Breaking Mirrors
by XXThistlexFlowerXX
Summary: Unlike glass, mirrors can't be seen through. Instead they force you to see everything you hate about yourself. But he was sure that, behind the mirrors, the frame was slowly, steadily breaking. Kakashi/OC KakashixOC Kaka/Oc
1. Luck

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, Kakashi, or anything else except this story.

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_**I wasn't lucky. I deserve it, too.**_

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**She supposed that she was what anyone would call 'adequate'. She wasn't ugly, nor was she extremely pretty. She was more talented than a lot of people, but not the most talented. She was intelligent, but not incredibly so.**

**The list goes on, but that's besides to point. The point is that whatever she had, she didn't have a lot of it.**

**And one thing she certainly had _nothing _of, was luck.**

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Another explosion rocked the earth, causing a girl to stumble. Her long legs tangled together, almost tripping her, before she quickly regained her balance and continued at her neck-breaking pace. Large shards of rock were falling around her in the underground hallways, which were about ready to collapse. She didn't fancy being crushed to bits.

She didn't look back once as she ran past the prison cells, full of pale, emaciated faces that screamed at her silently with their red-rimmed eyes. They knew that there was no hope for them anyway, and they didn't want her help. They would die here, and finally be taken from this miserable world.

They had no home. Their families were dead. They had been turned into freaks of nature. What else was there to live for?

Another explosion, and an earth shattering crack; she fell to the floor this time. However, this time, she hesitated.

Why was she running?

She lay on the cold, trembling ground of the hideout dumbly as that question ran through her head. She found that she couldn't answer it.

Who was she running to? Her master had fled, leaving her to find her way back to him. And she would, if she made it out of here alive. But the only people that were above ground now were the enemy, and the Sound ninja that were desperately trying to defend their territory.

Where would she go? If she decided to _not_ turn back to her master- a thought that she couldn't even comprehend—where could she run to? There was not a village- at least not one with a sane leader—that would allow her to take refuge. And even if they did, she would have absolutely no idea how to live there. She didn't know how to interact with other people in a casual way.

What was the point?

Yes, what was the purpose of her staying alive? Other than to serve her master and live as a tool, what use was she to the world? There wasn't possibly anything she could ever do to benefit anyone's life.

Her master could find another, though he would be thoroughly displeased. He'd probably throw a temper tantrum over her. Such a successful experiment had died in something as trivial as this. But she was still replaceable. She was not needed.

There was no point . . .

The cracking sound began to increase, and she just realized then that she was close to the exit. She could feel the warm breeze flying into the stuffy coldness of the hideout. However, this breeze was laced with dust and ashes, the scent of blood wafting through the air. A scent she knew by heart

It was bright. For her, blindingly bright, to the point where her vision turned white and a jolt of pain coursed through her eyes . However, she only clenched her eyes shut, and laid there.

That light was something that God hadn't reserved for a human like her, who belonged in darkness.

Her heart skipped a beat when a thundering crack was heard overhead, and she stupidly looked up.

Just in time to see the roof coming down on her.

She almost sighed, lying still and waiting for her fate.

_It's finally over,_ she thought, familiar numbness spreading to her limbs

She waited for the crushing agony of stones crunching her bones to pieces and squashing her internal organs, but instead felt a very different sensation.

First, she heard something sharp embed itself right beside her- a kunai, she realised. She saw a flash of something golden, and two strong arms encased her waist. There was a blast of chakra, and she was suddenly aware that she was being moved. It felt like some kind of narrow tunnel located in the eye of a tornado that was passing over an earthquake site. She felt as though her body was warping and shaking at the same time by some unknown force.

And then all movement stopped, and she was greeted by blinding light that brought tears to her eyes and pain exploded through her head. She was vaguely aware that she had somehow been transported to the outside.

However, being the transported against her will was very disheveling, causing a wave of nausea and dizziness to pass over her. But before she could vomit all over her possibly savior, she found herself falling roughly to the ground, smacking her head against the stony ground. Her momentarily sightless eyes winced, but otherwise kept her guard up as she stiffened and tried to regain her sight.

When her blurred vision finally melted away into crystal clear images, she found herself greeted with several swords pointed at every vital area on her body. She gazed unflinchingly at the razor sharp blades, knowing that if she moved even an inch, she would be killed. She carefully took in her surroundings.

The base was in ruins, nothing now but a battered building covering the now destroyed caves underground. Around the base, she could see the furious battle that had broken loose. Trees had been toppled over, the ground shattered in numerous areas. The area that was once surrounded by peaceful forest was stained red on many things. Takara could see every splash, every drop of blood that had been shed. From thirty feet away, she could see a single, crimson drop fall onto a Sound shinobi's face, which was still with death.

Her captors were obviously ANBU, dressed in black, skin tight suits that were reinforced with armor, protecting the vulnerable parts of their bodies. White masks, each representing a different animal and decorated with red designs, looked down at her. Despite the sun casting shadows on their faces, the girl could see the color of all of their eyes.

"Who are you?" one of them, the leader obviously, asked.

Takara flicked her eyes up at the ANBU captain, looking at him steadily and without even the slightest inkling of fear.

The man who spoke had a voice that was very unsuited to the serious tone that he was forced to use by his occupation; it sounded as if it spent a lot of time laughing. He had a slight tan, and on that tanned skin she could see the faint battle scars marring his body. The man was tall and slender, with unruly, sun-kissed blond hair that glowed like a halo around his head. Finally, she took noticed of his eyes, which shown a brilliant blue from the depths of his mask's eye holes.

"I am but a servant," she replied coolly, looking deep into his eyes.

The ANBU standing around her didn't move an inch as the blond member kneeled down in front of her, scrutinizing her expression.

"Of Orochimaru?"

Her sharp eyes saw every single flinch that rippled through the circle of ANBU at the man's name, but otherwise kept their impassiveness.

The brunette didn't answer for a moment, and felt a short sword pressed to her back dig into it painfully, pressing her to continue. The pain was mild, but annoying, so she decided to speak.

"Yes," she replied.

"Are you a kunoichi?"

A kunoichi. A female shinobi.

An honorable title that she could not bear.

"Not by your standards," she replied.

A flicker of annoyance at her vague answer as well as her lack of emotion flashed in the man's cerulean eyes, but he made no inclination of his feelings otherwise. Impressive. People usually lost their temper with her quickly.

"If you want to know where Orochimaru-dono is, I cannot answer that. He had fled this base some time ago. I remained here to help watch over the base, but have not heard from master in a few months," she said easily, no guilt, fear, or anything else of the like lacing her tone.

It didn't matter whether or not she told them information of her master. She knew nothing terribly significant. It would make no difference.

"You seem awfully willing to talk, even though you claim to be a servant," one of the ANBU, a female, said emotionlessly, though traces of disgust laced her words.

The captive girl blinked; she really was disgusting.

To a shinobi, no matter where you were, loyalty was everything. Two shinobi could fight to the death, could tear each other's larynx out and dismember each other, but still maintain a mutual respect for one another, because they each were willing to die for their affiliation. It was almost an unspoken code.

Loyalty, despite the fact that it separated people into subcategories such as 'race' and 'clan', at the same time brought the nations together in what is called 'the world.'

But _loyalty_ was something that the girl didn't have, nor understood.

What was there to die for, in this world of emptiness?

"I am a servant. My job is to allow myself to be used by my master as seen fit; nothing more. Where is the need for loyalty?"

That shut the woman up.

"That is irrelevant. I want to know exactly who she is, where she comes from, and how she came to be one of Orochimaru's underlings," an ANBU with a boar mask said in a gruff voice.

Takara didn't turn her head to look at him, for there was a sword pressed to her jugular.

"I don't know the answers any of those questions," she replied, "but I don't see how this has any relevance to your investigation. Knowing about my origins will not bring you any closer to Orochimaru-dono."

The woman from before said in exasperation, "Do you know_ anything _useful?"

This woman was rather annoying to the brunette.

"That depends, _Horse-san_, one what you consider useful," the girl said to the masked woman, edginess sharpening her tone, the only emotion she'd exhibited thus far.

The blond ignored the short squabble, and stared at the girl in order to find any traces of lying.

"How old are you?" he asked suddenly.

The girl looked at him blankly.

"That is hardly important," she scoffed.

The swords digging into her skin replied to her impudence.

"I am told that I will turn thirteen in March," she sighed.

This was growing tiresome. The position she was forced in was anything but comfortable, and her muscles ached and her cuts stung. Their questions seemed to have nothing to do with her master anymore, and if that was the case, why didn't they just kill her already? Surely they wouldn't let her live.

The blond ninja was silent for a long time, and the brunette could sense the uneasiness of the rest of the ANBU squad.

"What is your name?"

This time, surprise flashed briefly across her face.

It was known shinobi protocol to not have knowledge of the people you kill in the line of duty. Not knowing who you kill makes the job so much easier, and much easier on the psychiatric state.

"Why do you wish to know my name when you are going to kill me?"

"Who says that I'm going to kill you?"

The servant girl's eyes furrowed in utter confusion. This concept made no sense to her.

What would he accomplish by letting her live, except force her to continue this miserable, pathetic excuse for an existence?

It would be absolutely foolish to not kill her, considering all of the things she has done and the people she's affiliated with.

On the other hand, even death was too good for the likes of her. . .

She looked him straight in the eyes.

"You should kill me."

The ANBU man stared at her, slightly perturbed by her response.

The way she stared at him with dead, listless eyes, told him that she had absolutely no regard for her life or anybody else's. She had the eyes of someone who has been absolutely starved of humanity.

"I'm not going to kill you yet. You may be able to give us vital information. Therefore we are going to take you back to Konoha, where your mind will be probed for information. Don't even think about resisting."

Now, that was something that actually made sense to her mind.

"Now, will you tell me your name?"

Still with this extraneous question.

But she would tell him, her current owner. She had passed hands. The ANBU would use her to her full potential, just as Orochimaru-dono had. He would use her as he saw fit, and then discard her when she had worn out her use. Just like a set of worn kunai. A tool. A possession. She expected to be treated as nothing else, and that was all that she would ever be.

"I am called Takara."

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**If she had had even a shred of luck, she would have been executed on the spot.**

**But because she just had the most _rotten _luck, she was going to learn what it meant to be human.**

**And that was probably going to be the most challenging thing she would ever learn.**

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**Reviews are welcome!  
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	2. Shower Jutsu

**Shower Jutsu**

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"I've seen everything, and yet I've seen nothing."  
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**This **was a very poor change of scenery.

The dungeon that she had been sent to was just as dark as the base. It was just as cold, unwelcoming, damp, and malodorous. The floor that she was supposed to sleep on was just as hard, the water that she drank tasted just as stale, and unrecognizable mush that she was supposed to eat was just as bland.

_But_, she thought, _at least it's quieter than the base. No screams of torture echoing through the halls every other minute._

And other than the fact that she had chakra chains binding her to the wall and a useless blindfold still covering her eyes, she was rather comfortable. Her captors haven't harmed her as of yet, and haven't shown her a lot of hostility. Already, her situation was better than it was at the base. But she wondered how long that would last.

With her still alive, her previous master would probably search for her. She knew her master well. He wouldn't rest until he found his most promising experiment.

He always got what he wanted.

"Takara-san."

Her eyes, even from behind the blindfold, caught the outline of a man. His figure was something she learned very quickly. After all, he was her master now. What use would a servant be if they couldn't even recognize their master?

"Master," she greeted, bowing her head.

The figure was silent for a moment, before a heavy sigh heaved from his chest.

"The Hokage has ordered the ANBU to assess your credibility," he said before adding, "And, for the hundredth time, I am _**not**_ your master."

Takara ignored that, and tilted her head to the side slightly.

"I think it's easy to see that I am not a trustworthy person, master."

She saw the man's outline twitch in agitation.

"However, if they wish to search my memories, I will not resist," she told him in a bored voice.

"You really don't care what happens to you, do you?" the man asked quietly after a brief silence, crossing his arms.

Takara blinked, staring at the blond shinobi's silhouette blankly.

"My existence isn't necessary. No one would care if I die, so why should_** I**_ care?"

The shinobi stared at the girl, a mere teenager, with narrowed blue eyes. A thirteen year old girl, whether they be a ninja or not, should be concerned with boys, clothes, popularity_, something_. But this teenage girl cared about nothing. She lived for nothing. She _had_ nothing.

"I would care."

Takara's eyes widened from behind her blindfold, completely caught off guard. Her mouth opened and then closed again, for the first time unable to find her words. Why would anyone, let alone him, care if she was executed? She had done nothing that would make him care about her.

"Nani?" she blurted out, her voice suddenly a little higher than usual.

A small smile found its way onto his face, finding it extremely amusing how such simple words would fluster her so much. Her face was turning pink, and her mouth was open in utter shock.

"I said, I would care. I would feel troubled if you died."

"N-Naze?"

There was a loud squeak as the blond man opened her cell, bits of rust sprinkling the floor. His soft footfalls approached her, and Takara tensed when his presence stopped in front of her.

Through her blindfold, she could easily see the hand reaching towards her face. Despite herself, she flinched away, expecting to be hit or something of the like. However, she instead felt the thick cloth falling from her eyes to around her neck.

She cracked her eyes open slowly so that the she could adjust to the light, and eventually a smiling face came into view. Takara's heart leaped into her throat, captivated by the almost foreign expression.

She'd always wondered how it would feel to have someone smile at her without malice or ill intention. She'd seen such smiles among happy families, friends, and lovers, but none have ever been directed towards her.

Something warm and fuzzy erupted in her stomach, causing her to shift in discomfort. When was the last time she had felt such a sensation, she wondered.

It felt. . . _good_.

"You remind me of someone close to me," the blonde man said to her, his azure eyes twinkling.

"Close. . . to you?" she parroted.

"Hai. He behaves a lot like you do, but he's still a good person."

At this, Takara looked down, suddenly downcast as she shook her head.

"Then you are wrong. I am not a good person," she sighed.

"Then what kind of person are you?" the man asked with a still-gentle smile.

Takara opened her mouth quickly, ready to reply, when she realized that nothing came to mind. She frowned. Her mind worked furiously, trying to come up with an answer to his question. What kind of person was she? What did she like? What did she dislike? She'd never needed to think about it before. The more she thought, the more confused she felt, and despair suddenly became bright in her eyes, yet another emotion that she rarely showed.

"I. . . I-I. . . I don't know what kind of person I am," she whispered, her voice laced with sadness.

The man's eyes softened considerably, and slowly, he reached out in order to brush her hair from her face, not missing the way she flinched away from his touch.

He could see the emptiness in her eyes, the utter _hopelessness _that could only bebrought on by witnessing and experiencing the unspeakable. Incomprehensible horrors that most people, even shinobi, have the pleasure of not seeing. But this girl hadn't been so lucky.

"Well, Takara-san, would you like to find out?"

Takara looked at the man in silence for a long time, suspicion ripping through her head. It all made no sense. What did this man want from her? Why was he being so kind to her?

Would he turn on her, in the end?

Her throat went dry as she gazed at his kind, smiling face. Surprising even herself, she felt a strong yearning bloom in her chest, like an agonizing ache that would only be quelled if he kept on smiling at her like that. She desperately wanted to believe in him. She wanted so badly to understand how people could smile so happily; to know what it meant to be important to someone else; to know that people would mourn her when she died.

But hadn't she learned long ago? Such things were impossible for people like her.

And yet. . .

"You don't have to answer that right away," the man said gently, "Just trust me, though. I won't let anything happen to—"

"What is your name?" she blurted out hoarsely, unable to contain her bewilderment. When she saw his surprised face, she felt her heart thump, "Ano, forgive me. I should not have asked such a disrespectful question, master. . . Gomenasai."

The man looked at her bony face, alight with shock and confusion, looking almost like a startled kitten. So much different than the girl he'd yanked from that collapsing cave. Amused chuckling escaped his lips upon seeing her expression. The sound startled the girl.

"-nato," he said in between a musical laugh.

"Pardon?" she asked, chagrin bringing irritation to her voice.

Hearing her annoyance, his laughter subsided, and he wiped a tear from his eye while uttering a half-hearted apology.

"Minato," he finally said, "My name is Namikaze, Minato."

Another lovely smile graced his tan face, and he slowly reached behind her to deactivate the chakra binds from Takara's wrists as well. Takara slowly stretched her tight muscles, wincing as her wounds ached.

"Come. We must meet the ANBU."

Takara stared at the hand outstretched toward her, wondering what on earth she was supposed to do with it. She looked at him questioningly.

"Take it!" he laughed, "I'm only going to help you up."

Tentatively, Takara's pale hand took hold of his larger hands, gasping in surprise when the man pulled her up to her feet with ease.

"Let's go."

Takara stared at him in befuddlement, the warmth from his hand almost burning her chilled skin. When was the last time another person had touched her so gently?

The girl couldn't help but think that having a hand to hold felt fantastic.

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**Takara's** slim torso rose and fell steadily, still unconscious from the chakra the medic-nin had forced into her system. All eyes were on the teenage girl, some wide with shock, others narrowed in anger.

A strangled sob echoed through the dark room from a young Yamanaka who was curled up on the floor. Her trembling hands were clutching her blond head, wide grey eyes alight with frenzied fear. The other three, older Yamanakas, had either nauseated or grave expressions on their faces.

Yamanaka Inokira, the current leader of the family, had a deathly severe expression on his face as he stared down at Takara, anger swirling around in his sky-blue eyes.

He'd penetrated many people's minds in his middle-aged life, whether it was for information, torture, or therapeutic purposes. He'd experienced the minds of the insane, psychotic, traumatized, schizophrenic, and anything else you can think of. He'd seen hell. But even he would have to admit that what he'd just seen was probably the Seventh Circle.

The atmosphere was extremely tense. You could slice it with a butter knife, the air was so thick with it.

The Hokage took a long drag of his pipe, the leathery skin of his brow furrowed in troubled thought. The man had known Orochimaru, his former student, well. He had expected nothing less than the dehumanizing experiments that Orochimaru was notorious for. However, he understood that Orochimaru was no longer a human being. Sarutobi no longer knew the person that had once been his most precious student.

"Just answer me one question, Inokira," the Hokage asked, looking much more aged than he already was.

"Yes?" the younger man said in a gruff voice.

"Is she dangerous?"

Inokira silent for a long time before he sighed, and looked at the young girl still lying on the table.

"I can't say that she doesn't have any risks," the Yamanaka leader then looked at the Hokage, and hesitated.

The Hokage raised a questioning eyebrow, seeing the conflict in the man's expression.

"But?"

Inokira felt irritated with himself. He was a special jounin, for crying out loud, and yet he felt as though he was going soft. The expression of his youngest daughter's face, which wasn't much more mature than Takara's, flashed in his mind. How could he think cruelly of this girl when she was so damn_ young_?

"I. . . don't think she deserves to be executed or imprisoned," he finally muttered.

This initiated a quiet round of murmurs to ripple through all who were present. Some of them were of agreement, while others rebuked the Yamanaka ANBU member for his leniency. The hushed voices turned into arguments when an ANBU Uchiha said something about the 'weakness' of the Yamanaka leader. When the quarrels grew louder and muscles began to twitch in violent gestures, the Hokage raised his hand silently, quickly crushing the squabble before it escalated to a battle.

"I understand your feelings on the matter, Inokira, but I cannot simply allow this girl to go free considering who she's associated with. We are in the midst of a war, and I cannot have someone who may be a threat remain in the village."

Minato released the deep breath that he had been holding, forcing himself to remain calm as he stepped forward.

"May make a suggestion?"

The Hokage regarded him with a grunt.

"Would you be completely opposed to someone taking it upon themselves to watch the girl until she can be trusted?"

The Hokage shook his head.

"She would have to be supervised by a shinobi, of which I have none to spare," the Hokage muttered.

"You can hire her as a mercenary of sorts. Put her on one of the chuunin teams," Minato persisted with his best smile.

Sarutobi looked at Minato warily.

"Minato, as one of my most accomplished shinobi, I have faith in your decisions. But unless there is someone to supervise her at all times, then I cannot consent. . . Don't tell me. . ." the Hokage muttered when Minato's contagious smile only increased in width.

"My home is large enough for another person, and I'm sure my team wouldn't mind another addition," the blue-eyed jounin reasoned.

Minato heard an incredulous cough from somewhere in the room, and he laughed nervously.

"Okay_, most _of my team wouldn't mind it."

There was a very lengthy silence in the room while the Hokage contemplated. A eyes were on him.

The aging man wasn't a cruel person by nature. Actually, people that knew him well would tell you that he was a too sympathetic for his own wellbeing. However, the village and all of the people in it meant everything to him. He didn't want to jeopardize anyone's safety.

At the same time, he felt responsible for the girl. Even though it has been years since Orochimaru left the village, Sarutobi had always felt as though it was his fault. If he hadn't been so blind to what his student was becoming, then none of this would have happened. It was he who had created the monster that had caused this young girl, and countless others, so much suffering.

Finally, the Hokage released a lengthy sigh, a long cloud of smoke billowing from his lips.

"Minato, you are completely responsible for everything that girl does, and anything else that will result her staying here. Do you understand?"

"Clearly."

The Hokage couldn't help but wonder, as he stared at the bright-eyed blond in front of him, what was becoming of his shinobi.

However, the Sondaime could see the absolute serious and unwavering resolution in Minato's eyes and the Hokage knew there would be no persuading him from his decision. Finally, the Hokage smirked, shaking his head.

"Then I wish you the best of luck."

Once again, there were appalled murmurs rippling throughout the room, shocked that Konoha's Yellow Flash would be housing and caring for a young girl. It almost seemed scandalous.

Minato them, and looked at Takara, who even in her sleep looked anything but peaceful.

_It looks like your luck will finally change for the better_, he thought.

"Minato, what are you going to tell Kushina when she comes home?" Inokira inquired with a raised eyebrow.

Everyone watched with mild amusement as the man let out a very unbecoming squeak, turning as white as a sheet as he thought of his fiery-haired wife's reaction to the news. Minato may be undergoing some facial reconstruction very soon.

_Or maybe not_.

* * *

**Takara** opened her eyes, and found that the darkness that greeted her did not hurt her eyes. She began to sit up, holding her head and trying to figure out where she was. Disoriented, she began to look around. The first thing that she registered was that she was in a foreign room in a foreign environment. Her heart sped up when she didn't recognize her surrounding.

Her eyes glinted in dark as she heard an echoing click in room to her left. Her well-trained muscles moved instantly, as if on their own accord. She was out of her sitting position and flying towards the intruder, hands poised to strike a deadly blow.

The intruder was in her sight at that moment, but was gone the very instant she had leaped into the air. Eyes widening, Takara twisted her body in the air just in time to see a flash of blond grab her arms and flip her so that she thrown onto the bed. In that same instant, Takara found herself pinned there.

"You react quickly," someone chuckled from above her, "That's good."

Takara's heart was beating quickly, her muscles still tensed even after she recognized the voice. All of her instincts brought on by the training that was branded into her brain told her to throw him off and slit his throat.

But his smile calmed her slightly.

"W-Where am I?" she rasped, "And what happened?"

His weight disappeared from her, and she sat up. Minato's blue eyes twinkled in amusement as he walked to a window, and drew open the blinds, allowing sunlight to shine through. Takara shied away for a moment, but relaxed when the sunlight stopped at her waist. Minato smiled knowingly.

"The medical examination told us how sensitive you are."

Takara blinked slowly.

_That's right, _she thought, _I've been taken to Konoha. _

"Am I. . .still in Konoha?"

This earned a chuckle from the blond man.

"You'll see soon enough," he tossed a bundle of clothing onto her bed and pointing to a door on the right side of the room, "But first, go clean up and get dressed. I have a lot to talk to you about."

Takara blinked, and he had disappeared. She frowned, wondering what jutsu he was using to move so quickly. In fact, many questions were whirring around in her head, but she decided that she would obey the orders she was given thus far, and then go from there.

The kunoichi slid slowly off of the bed, shielding her eyes as the sunlight enveloped her face. When her eyes adjusted, the girl turned on the light switch.

Her sharp eyes quickly took in and memorized her surroundings. The room was larger than she would possibly need, holding a twin sized bed, a desk, a dresser, and a mirror. All things that she didn't require, and had never possessed. The walls were white, but the bed was a dark maroon color matching the curtains and the chair that sat at the desk.

On the right wall, there were two doors. One of them was opened to reveal another room, where her master indicated she was to bathe somehow, while the other she presumed to be a closet.

She entered the marble white bathroom, so clean and smelling of fresh pine. There was a large mirror in front of it, and she frowned as she found herself looking at her reflection in annoyingly sharp detail.

Tall for her age, with long legs and a little too thin, she looked like a walking pole. Pale skin, though concealed in dirt, grime, and dried blood, was marred from forehead to toe with scars. They ranged from being so light that they would only be visible to someone with her keen eyes, to rough, jagged, and painful to look at; those, though, she could cover up with clothing. Dark mahogany hair fell to her shoulder blades in unruly waves that resembled a rat's nest. And then there were her eyes, which stared eerily back at her as if in mockery.

She looked away with a snort, and began stripping off her clothing, which was now only a long, tattered grey shirt. Then, she looked to see just where she was supposed to bathe. And then she was met with quite the conundrum.

It. . . was a white. . . almost a rectangular Tupperware- shaped _thing_. She stared at it for a long time, wondering just what it was. She saw that there were two knobs and a lever on the wall of one side of it, shining silver against the smooth marble. She climbed into the thing, feeling its smooth texture.

Slowly, her long fingers reached out to touch the knobs, and then grasped them, making them turn. The poor girl jumped out of her skin and let out a shriek when the water began jutting out from the faucet-like structure from above her. Quickly, she scrambled from the tub, landing quite ungracefully in her haste. She repressed a groan when she hit her head on the sink and her shin on the side of the Tupperware thing.

In an instant, she felt the presence of chakra from outside the door, and then heard a sharp rapping.

"Takara-san, are you okay in there?"

Hurriedly, she wrapped herself in a towel, her heart pounding in her chest.

"I-I don't know what this is," she replied shakily, staring with wide eyes at the thing that was still spouting the ice-cold water.

"You don't know what _what_ is?"

"I don't know _what it's called_," she replied in frustration, "So I must show you."

Without any warning, she pulled the bathroom door open. Minato clapped a hand over his eyes.

"I am covered. You may remove your hand, if you wish."

The Namikaze slowly removed his hand from over his eyes, and was relieved to see that she was indeed covered. Takara pointed to the thing that was causing her so much confusion.

Minato stared at her blankly as he stared at the water, then looked back at her serious expression.

"The shower?"

Takara's eyes were vacant of any recognition of the word, and she tilted her head.

"What is 'shower'? Is that some type of jutsu?"

". . . ."

* * *

**:Meanwhile:**

The Hokage was shuffling papers, when suddenly a loud, raucous laughter began to shake the walls around him. He growled in agitation when his tea spilled on some of the papers, and he slammed his palms onto the desk.

"Who gave Elder Homura alcohol?"

* * *

**Konoha** was truly unlike anything she'd ever seen.

She simply couldn't see enough, which is something that was very uncharacteristic of her. Even with her magnificent eyesight, she couldn't absorb the images fast enough, whipping her head left and right, up and down, just to see everything in the bright, beautiful place.

She'd been outside before, but it was always at night, and she would be required to return to the base before the sun rose. Takara remembered once when she returned to the base after sunrise, when the sky was a mixture of tantalizing oranges, reds, and pinks, and birds had just begun to open their eyes and ruffle their feathers.

But daytime itself was different entirely. She's seen pictures of the outdoors, of villages, and nature in all times of the day, but to experience it first hand was like oxygen after life-long asphyxiation.

The sky was a breath-taking, tantalizing blue, laced with fluffy clouds. In the distance, she could see a set of mountains that were decorated with humongous statues of three men, the Hokages, as Minato had explained. The village was made up of the most colorful and interesting buildings. Takara could smell the flower shop they went by, and various outdoor restaurant stands that served hundreds of unknown foods. Everything was alive with the bustle of people.

An obese woman that had a kind smile and smelled like cinnamon was buying apples from a fruit stand. There was a middle aged man that was stumbling through the streets, holding his hands and muttering something about too much alcohol. Three young children zipped through the streets, their shrieks of laughter filling the air as they chased each other. One of the children actually ran into Takara, who stared down at him in surprise. The little freckled boy grinned sheepishly at her before uttering an apology. Takara continued to gawk in bewilderment as the child resumed sprinting through the crowd after his friends.

She saw countless faces, and even though not all of them seemed happy, in their eyes she could see the _life_ that they had. Life that she almost didn't know existed.

Minato's watched as the expressionless teenager continued to look at everything around her. He wasn't quite sure what she was thinking, but he could tell that everything she was seeing was new to her. She hungrily took everything in, and her curiosity made her resemble a teetering infant. His mouth twitched upward in amusement.

He didn't know whether she was a mature child, or just a naïve adult. It would be interesting to see his team's reaction to their newest addition. Not that he was concerned. They were all chuunin, and were friendly enough. He didn't think that he had any reason to worry.

"Kakashi-teme! I swear I'll _pulverize_ you!"

Takara was so startled that she darted into the trees.

Obviously, Minato was _wrong_.

* * *

Thank you to those who reviewed! I would love to recieve critique as well as praise!


	3. Teamwork

Discalimer: If I'd owned Naruto, I'm pretty sure I would have made Kakashi the star anyway. . .

* * *

**Teamwork**

_**Because man obviously can't do anything alone.**_

_**Even catch a cat.  
**_

* * *

Kakashi was, by nature, an impatient person. He didn't tolerate things that irritated him well, and it showed. It was no secret that he had little tolerance for the ignorant, naïve, and immature. People who had the misfortune of discovering this the hard way usually stayed out of his way, but apparently some people didn't have any sense wahtsoever.

And a text-book example of this would be Obito Uchiha.

"And everyone keeps on talking about this _Itachi_. He's barely a toddler, for crying out loud! I'm going to be greater than the brat'll ever be!"

The Uchiha went on and on, much to the dissatisfaction of his team mates. He didn't notice in the slightest. At this point, he was gesturing his arms wildly for no reason in particular.

"I wonder what's making Minato-sensei so late?" Rin suddenly piped up, her chocolate brown eyes tight with annoyance.

Her remark, though an attempt to make her team mate _shut up_, only made Obito throw himself into another bout of senseless rambling.

"Yeah! I mean, I'm usually the late one. ("You _were_ late, moron.") But now sensei will never be able to criticize me again, or else he'll be a hypocrite!"

"Minato-sensei is one of the village's most requested jounin; therefore he is probably busy with an urgent matter, seeing as we are in the midst of a war. What's your excuse?" Kakashi drawled, his dark grey eyes staring at his idiotic team mate in contempt.

"I was rescuing an old lady from a vicious, man-eating dog!"

"You couldn't rescue _yourself_ from a _paper bag_."

"That was _one time_, dammit!"

"The fact that you try to justify that '_one time_' is concerning. How did you become a chuunin again?"

"Kakashi-teme! I swear I'll _pulverize_ you!"

Rin sighed, very, _very_ used to their arguing.

Obito drew a kunai, and hurled it at the silver-haired teenager. Kakashi was about to catch it, when a familiar blond flash appeared in front of him. There, in the blink of an eye, was their sensei, the kunai spinning on his index finger. The man sighed.

"I can't leave you guys alone for _twenty _minutes. . ."

"What took you so long, sensei?" Rin inquired, not fazed at all by their sensei's sudden appearance.

Minato smiled brightly at the medic.

"Actually, that's what I want to talk to you guys about today!" he chirped before turning to face the trees, "Takara-san!" he called, "It's alright! You can come out!"

Kakashi looked around, but could find no indication that there was a person besides his team present. Furrowing his brow, he searched harder, feeling around with his chakra and growing even more annoyed when he couldn't sense that either. Either this person had good chakra control, or they had a pathetically small amount of chakra. The smallest of sounds reached the young genius's ears, and he whipped his head in that direction.

Obito yelped when the figure flashed behind him. Instinctively, he drew a kunai and slashed at the form behind him, much to the horror of his team mates. But Minato only sighed, shaking his head.

Obito suddenly found himself on the ground, arms pinned behind him, and the kunai that he had just been wielding aimed to the back of his head. It happened so quickly that Rin didn't quite catch it, gasping in surprise. Kakashi was mildly impressed.

"I don't understand. Is this person not a Chuunin?" the person asked in a quiet, but hard voice as she stared incredulously at the boy beneath her.

Kakashi's dark grey eyes stared cautiously.

In front of the team, stood a girl. A tall girl, by comparison of her height with Obito's, but was thin and lanky. She had sickly pale skin that glowed unhealthily in the light and stood shockingly against her hair. Her dark hair was damp, hanging in messy waves down her back and showing deep reddish highlights in the sun light.

She wore an oversized, white short sleeved T-shirt with an Uzumaki swirl on the front. Oversized navy girl shorts hung loosely from her narrow hips, and she was barefooted. Even though her body was lost in the big clothing, Kakashi could tell that she was too thin, her cheek bones jutting out unnaturally. She looked so frail that anyone would see her as vulnerable.

However, one look at her eyes, and Kakashi immediately knew that she was nothing of the sort.

Her eyes, a bright, startling shade of sliver, reflected the light and glinted like a shard of diamond. They were large, and probably the only interesting thing about her. But what really intrigued him, was the steely emotionlessness on their surface. He searched and searched, but there was absolutely _nothing_ in those eyes, and somehow, it put him on edge. Those were the eyes of a fully fledged shinobi.

His thoughts were broken by a frustrated yell.

"I _**am**_ a Chuunin, dammit! Get off of me!" Obito howled, trying to get out of her grip. Obviously the girl was not as weak as she appeared.

She looked cautiously at Minato, who was trying once again not to laugh, but released him when Minato gave her a nod. Obito jumped away from the stranger immediately, muscles tensed as he stared warily at his attacker.

"Who is she? What gives her the right to just come and attack me?" Obito spluttered, red with the embarrassment of being so easily taken down by a girl.

Takara frowned at him, her mouth twitching in slight annoyance.

"You attacked me first, if you recall. If you cannot follow up an attack with skill, then it is your own fault when you are beaten," she said icily.

"T-That's not the point!" he yelled at her, pointing at her accusingly, his finger practically up her nose "Who are you!" he snarled in her face.

Takara's silver eyes flashed dangerously as flecks of saliva were spat upon her cheek, and Minato hurriedly interrupted before the girl got angry.

"Her name is Takara, and from now on, she will be a member of our team." Minato then winced when he realized that he could have broken the news more delicately and had only made the situation worse.

"_**NANI?**_" Obito exclaimed loudly.

Takara cringed at the loudness of the black-haired boy, and her hand twitched as if she were debating on striking him.

"Doushite?" Rin asked, also surprised, but in a much quieter voice.

Kakashi only stared with risen eyebrows at his sensei, waiting for him to continue. Minato sighed, running a hand through his slightly unruly golden hair.

"Recently, many people have been migrating to Konoha to escape the crossfire of the war. In return for their residency here, at least one person in the family is required to join the Konoha militia. Takara here has just moved from Tea Country."

Understanding lit up in the three chuunin's eyes, and almost immediately some of their apprehension melted.

Takara blinked.

_They trust everything they hear so quickly. .._

A movement immediately caught her eye, and her silver irises slid to the female of the team when she stepped forward. She immediately put the girl's chocolate brown eyes and hair to memory. She noted that the girl was not very muscular, and her skin was rather soft looking. Obviously not a close-combat type. However, she could tell that she had marvelous chakra control. Those facts led Takara to believe that she may be a medic.

"Konichiwa, Takara-san. My name's Rin! I hope we get along!" she said in a sweet, kind voice, her eyes warm.

Takara blinked, wondering how to respond, when the loud-mouthed boy interrupted her, and a flash of orange and black appeared in front of her.

"And I'm Uchiha, Obito! Biggest asset to the prestigious Uchiha Clan!" the boy declared boldly, puffing out his chest in pride.

Takara tilted her head, somehow finding hard to believe that this boy was an asset of any kind. However, the clan symbol of his shirt indicated that he was indeed an Uchiha. He had their trade-mark dark hair, and deep onyx eyes. His skin was tanned from long hours in the sun, and he had a very child-like demeanor about him. She felt that it was safe to assume that his chakra was fire-based, and that he had long ranged attacks in his arsenal. Takara's sharp eyes analyzed him for anything that indicated strength. But his chakra levels were average, his control was terrible, and he had yet to activate his kekkei genkai..

Seeing her confusion at the boy's claim, the final member of her team spoke in a stern, but drawling voice.

"What Obito means is that he's the biggest_ Idiot_ of the Uchiha clan. ("Shut _**up**_, Kakashi-teme!") I am Hatake Kakashi," he introduced, looking at the kunoichi with an uncaring expression.

Kakashi was shorter than Obito, but taller than Rin. However, underneath his navy t-shirt, Takara could tell that he spent many hours training, but didn't eat as much as he should. He had impeccable chakra control, though not as flawless as Rin's, and his chakra reserves were massive for his age. Takara could tell by the way he held himself that he was a good taijutsu user, and that many of his attacks would be close or mid-ranged. His personality was impassive and unshakable, both good qualities in a shinobi. Takara had no trouble remembering his pallid skin, unruly silver hair, and dark grey irises.

Though he didn't show it, the young Hatake was quickly growing uneasy under her eerie gaze. The silver eyes stared at him as if she were seeing straight through him, and suspicion flared violently in his mind.

Finally, she spoke.

"My name is Takara," was all she said in her even voice.

She had a feeling that her greeting wasn't exactly proper, and she racked her brain for something intelligent and appropriate to say. Finding none, she resisted the urge to frown.

_Greetings are more difficult that I had thought._

Her awkwardness was apparent to only Minato, and he swiftly broke the tension.

"Right. Now, how about a simple mission in order to get us started?"

"What rank?" Was the first question asked, by Kakashi.

"A D-rank—don't give me that look Obito. We need to assess how well our team-work will be with another addition to the team," Minato said sternly when his original three students gave him a pouting look.

"But our team-work was just fine before!" Obito groaned.

Minato resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"Our teamwork is actually pretty horrible. Maybe with Takara, we can learn how to behave like a team." _Probably not, though_.

Takara was growing more uncomfortable. She had absolutely no idea how to behave on a team, and only had a vague idea of what teamwork actually was.

Minato smiled airily, realizing her unasked question.

"You have to try and understand each other's actions, and be able to act accordingly with them."

Takara frowned. How was she supposed to understand how her team mates thought? They were their own persons, correct? She had absolutely nothing in common with a soft kunoichi, a loudmouthed Uchiha, and a condescending Hatake. Somehow, she doubted that they would get along.

But, if her master said so. . . .

* * *

She took it back. Even if her master said so. . .

This time, he was _**wrong.**_

"Obito! You scared Tora off!" Rin groaned when the kitten zipped off somewhere in the trees, disappearing completely.

Obito blushed in chagrin, his now thoroughly scratched up face smarting slightly. Kakashi emerged from the bushes, shaking leaves from his hair. Takara had silently appeared beside her team.

Their mission was to locate and attain a landlord's fiancé's orange kitten. Apparently, this wasn't the first time they had been given this mission. Takara wondered why they bothered, seeing as the cat obviously didn't want to go home.

"Gomen, I just got something in my eye, so I couldn't see it!"

Takara gave him a look.

"You are wearing goggles."

"Some dirt got underneath!"

"Then they are useless and need to be discarded."

"I will never get rid of these! They are my trademark!"

Takara looked at him strangely before letting out an inaudible sigh. Her head was starting to hurt with all of this thinking. She was becoming continuously confused about her new surroundings and acquaintances. The two boys constantly got into petty arguments over things that the brunette simply didn't understand, while Rin silently bore the noise.

Takara on the other hand was trying to find the right way to react to the situation. On her own, she would easily be able to capture the cat, but she didn't think that it would be 'teamwork' to complete the mission by herself. She shook her head to rid herself of all of her thoughts. She was going to get herself unfocused, and this was a mission. She could never afford to be unfocused.

Takara's silver eyes slid over to Kakashi, who was looking a mixture of annoyed, impatient, and indifferent.

"Are we going to just stand here, or catch the cat?" he asked with a sigh.

Everyone uttered an agreement, before following the boy in the direction the cat had disappeared to. They appeared in another clearing, and the four pre-teens looked around, trying to find clues as to where the orange tabby had run off to. They found nothing.

"Great, now we have to start from square one," Obito muttered.

"Whose fault do you think that is, idiot," Kakashi returned emotionlessly.

Obito opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off.

"The cat went that way," Takara said confidently, secretly pleased that she had prevented another squabble between the two boys.

Rin looked surprised.

"How do you know that, Takara-san?"

Takara walked about fifteen feet to the center of the clearing, and crouched down in front of a brown, broken leaf in the middle. Her team mates followed.

"This leaf was recently stepped on by something. The way it is broken suggests a point of impact, which fits the size of the kitten's foot. I can tell by the breaks in the leaf witch direction its paw was facing while it was running. Therefore, I concur that the kitten ran that way," she replied, pointing in the direction she was implying.

Obito looked at her like she was crazy. All he saw was a broken leaf.

Kakashi's steely eyes watched his new team mate closely. She moved precisely as her slender fingers brushed the leaf, but didn't move it. Her deliberate movements told him that she was very good at gathering information, and would possibly make a good infiltrator. Furthermore, she seemed to have extremely keen eyesight and a very analytical mind. A small knot appeared on his brow as distrust crept into his thoughts. A person such as her would be an asset to an enemy, and a serious threat to her enemies.

None the less, they followed the brunette into the undergrowth. It wasn't long before a gurgling sound could be heard through the trees. Kakashi knew that they had reached the river.

Normally, this river was a very cam and tranquil place that allowed for good meditation. During summer months, it was a good place to wade in and simply relax into its gentle current. However at this point in time, the river was a very unsafe place. The season being right at the end of winter, melting glaciers from the distant mountains were pouring into the river's reservoirs, creating the monstrous current that they were seeing now.

However, what he was paying more attention to was the distressed mewling that could be heard.

"Over there!" Rin cried urgently, pointing a finger to a branch that was hanging over the river.

A flimsy branch held none other than the orange kitten, who was wailing in terror as the rushing river roared beneath it. A particularly large swell hit the kitten, and it let out a gurgling mewl as water made its way into its windpipe.

Obito shot forward first. He climbed up the tall, but rather flimsy tree, getting on his stomach and beginning to crawl across the erratically shaking branch. The Uchiha grunted when a swell almost made him lose his hold on the branch, but he continued forward. He reached out his hand towards the orange kitten, its golden eyes wide with fear, and grabbed it's scruff. However, the cat kept a strong grip on the branch, wailing even louder when Obito tried to make it let go.

"Come on, stupid cat!" he growled, now soaking wet.

As if his words were encouraging (and they weren't in the least), the kittens claws released the bark. Obito beamed, and tucked the terrified kitten into his jacket, ignoring the tiny claws that clung to him for dear life. However, the smile fell off of his face when he heard a sickening crack. His face turned green as he desperately tried to get off of the branch.

Kakashi, Rin, and Takara's eyes widened as the branch gave away under the weight of the chuunin, and began to plummet into the raging river.

"Obito, you idiot!" Rin shrieked, just as a torrent of silver suddenly appeared on another branch of the tree. Kakashi was now standing on another branch branch, thick wire wrapped around the trunk of the tree. The Hatake didn't hesitate, and leaped off of the branch, his silver hair flying behind him. One arm grasping to the wire, holding it in place with chakra, he reached out a far as he could with the other and just managed to grab Obito by the ankle.

Rin breathed out a sigh of relief, but Takara stiffened, her sharp eyes catching another problem before the rest of her team.

"Obito! The cat!" Kakashi yelled, realizing it as well.

In the midst of falling, Obito's jacket began to unzip, leaving the kitten exposed. A huge splash of water detached the kitten from his black cotton undershirt, and the creature began to plummet towards the water.

Rin stood petrified, and with Kakashi and Obito preoccupied, Takara knew that the next action would be hers. Furrowing her brows, she wondered what her course of action should be.

"_Then, what kind of person are you?"_

It was just a cat. The lord's wife could get over it. But then again, a mission was a mission. And she had been trained to never allow a mission to fail. But. . . It was still just a cat. Such an insignificant existed wouldn't possibly be missed.

A bad feeling twisted in her gut at the thought, and she felt surprised, wondering what the emotion was. .She couldn't quite place the word. Anger? No. Sadness? Not quite. . .

Was this guilt?

"_I don't know what kind of person I am."_

She frowned, pondering this. Would she feel guilty, letting this kitten die? Why did it matter to her? It was just an unimportant kitten. In this life, there are people and things that matter, and those that don't. It won't matter if this kitten dies.

Her silver eyes watched in almost slow motion as the tiny creature fall to the cold, swirling, foaming river whose waves stretched out like unrelenting jaws, ready to swallow it up.

"_Would you like to find out?"_

What should she do?

The Uchiha made a futile grasp for the kitten, and his dark eyes watched in horror as the creature became only two, precious seconds from falling into the waterway that would surely be his end. Rin shrieked, while Kakashi growled in frustration.

And then a speedy flash of reddish-brown caught everyone's eye, and Takara appeared in mid-air over the water. Her back was facing the current, her face facing the blue sky as her arms were outstretched to snatch the furry kitten from the air. It landed securely on her chest, and she wrapped her arms protectively around the creature as her body splashed into the ferocious current.

Kakashi cursed.

_She's insane_!

"Takara-san!" Obito and Rin yelled in horror as the kunoichi fought to keep her head and the kitten's above the water.

Water rushed down her throat as the icy cold clutches of the river fought to drown her. Her mind was working furiously, and a jutsu popped into her panicked mind. A huge swell of water dunked her and the kitten under the water. No longer knowing which way was up or down, she clutched the kitten as if it were her life line, and made a hand sign.

_Suiton: Funsha no Jutsu_ (Water Release: Water Jet Jutsu!)

From beneath her, a swirl of water began to form around her. Wrapping around her ankles, the chakra uncoiled like a spring, propelling her upward. She gasped for air when she shot out of the water, and so did the kitten. She thought about her options quickly, and her sharp eyes immediately caught sight of her team, who at that point were racing against the river after her. In the lead, was Kakashi.

"Kakashi!" she yelled, and hurled the kitten with perfect precision at the team mate closest to her.

Surprised, the silver-haired boy halted momentarily and caught the kitten, Rin and Obito zipping past him.

Takara was about to feel relieved, but then remembered her own predicament. She quickly found herself in the river once more, tossed around like a rag doll. She managed to break through the surface, and heard the urgent yells of her team mates, trying to tell her something, but she couldn't understand them. Takara prepared herself to try using her water jutsu again, when a roar that drowned out even the river reached her ears. Takara's silver eyes peered behind her, and her blood ran cold when she understood what her team was trying to warn her about.

Not far ahead, the river suddenly stopped, and the only thing beyond that was a wide expanse of sky. In the distance you could see trees and mountains, but beyond the end of the river, there appeared to be nothing.

A waterfall.

Takara urgently tried her jutsu again, but her chakra couldn't form the vortex that would propel her upward against the hellish current.

She was stuck.

Takara didn't even have time to think of another plan when there was suddenly nothing beneath her, not even water. Her silver eyes widened as her body twisted in mid air, looking downwards to see the easily two-thousand-foot drop. Ice-cold drops of water smacked her in the face as she fell, the sting lost over the numbness that swept through her panicking body. Her lungs couldn't draw in enough air to let out a scream, her internal organs about to eject themselves out of her mouth while she plummeted to her obvious death.

She closed her eyes.

_This is definitely it._

And then, a weird sensation tingled in her stomach, and she felt arms literally scoop her out of the air. Her eyes shot open when she felt her body being ripped from that specific spot, thrown into a vortex of both impossible speed and agonizing slowness. Just when she thought she was going to lose her breakfast, she was spat back out of the funnel, and was now greeted with the familiar sensation of being on level ground, even though she was being held by someone.

With wide eyes, she looked up to see the ever-smiling face of Minato, who had water dripping from his golden hair.

"We have to stop meeting like this," he joked, setting her gently onto the ground. But then his expression turned a little more serious, "Seriously, though. No more near-death experiences for awhile, okay?"

Takara nodded dumbly, her chest heaving as she gasped for air. Her gangly legs wobbled like jelly, but she had never been more grateful for dry ground as she was at that moment. Her heart beat was starting to turn back to normal, but a sudden rustle of leaves to her left made her jump, sliding immediately into an attack position. Minato grasped her shoulder though before she could lunge towards the presumed attacker.

"You should learn to distinguish enemies from friends, Takara," he said with a sigh.

Takara couldn't reply before a semi familiar form emerged from the trees.

"Takara-san!" Rin gasped when she saw Takara, shivering and dripping from head to toe.

The medic immediately ran forward, her hands glowing with green energy. The energy prickled at Takara's skin in what should have been a good way, but instead she flinched away from those hands. Rin paused, deactivating her healing chakra when the girl turned sheet white.

"It's okay, Takara-san. I'm only making sure you're alright," she said softly, noting the fear and distrust in the other brunette's eyes.

Takara regarded her carefully, repeatedly glancing at Rin's hands. The hands of a shinobi proficient in healing energy. Hands that were meant to be gentle, meant to heal injuries and ease pains. But Takara had always known such hands to be ones that hurt rather than healed.

Rin saw the wavering wariness in the kunoichi's eyes, and smiled softly. Slowly, she reached out to grab Takara's arm, ignoring the resulting tension in the lean muscles.

"Let me show you?"

Takara was so stiff that she looked like she would snap, but she didn't resist when Rin rested a green-glowing hand on a small cut that Takara had gotten in the midsts of the chaos. Silver eyes watched, both intrigued and cautious when the glowing, warm hands touched her chilled skin. The warmth was pleasant, sinking into her skin and easing the stinging as the angry red gash began to close. Takara blinked, turning her arm over and over to see if she could find any indication that the cut had been there at all. She could find none.

Rin smiled at the girl's obvious fascination, and continued to quietly heal any injuries that she had gotten, but paused when she examined the rest of her. Her chocolate-brown eyes furrowed, surprised at the extent and severity of the injuries. Deep muscular tearing and abnormal fluctuations of chakra around several other organs and muscles, indicating trauma. These injuries were old too, so there wasn't much she could do for them besides reduce inflammation. But the wounds must have been pretty nasty when they were fresh. . . She glanced at Minato, a question in her eyes, but the man shook his head. Though Rin felt troubled, she didn't press the subject.

Finally, Rin stepped away. Takara rolled her shoulders and tested her muscles, surprised that she could move them without feeling pain. She felt lighter.

"Arigotou. . . Rin-san," she said almost shyly, so quietly that Takara wondered if she could hear her.

But Rin smiled, laughing.

"It's what I'm here for!"

"Rin. .. The kitten doesn't look so good," the voice of Obito suddenly sounded.

Takara whipped her head around, surprised that she hadn't noticed the presence of the two male members of her team until that point. She had been too mesmerized by Rin's abilities.

Standing beside Obito was a serious-looking Kakashi, obviously a characteristic of the silver-haired pre-teen. His grey eyes briefly assessed Takara's battered appearance, uncaring.

Takara didn't care about his lack of interest in her wellbeing. In fact, it was slightly relieving, knowing that there was someone that behaved towards her like she was used to. However, the suspicious light in his grey irises put her on edge, though no one could tell from the eerily calm expression on her face. She returned the look, but didn't convey any of these thoughts in her gaze. After another moment, he looked away.

With his gaze off of her, she put her attention back to the kitten, who by now was now being poked and prodded by the medic of the team. Rin's brown eyebrows knitted together, having to concentrate hard in order to assess the creature's health. She was no veterinarian by any means, so her knowledge of the feline body was minimal. But she didn't find anything wrong with its bones or organs. . . except. . .

Rin's eyes lit up in realization, and two fingers lit up with chakra. She pressed the soft digits to the kitten's chest, weaving her chakra into the kitten's tiny lungs. A few seconds later, the little creature coughed up a mouthful of water, letting out a pitiful mewl. But it was breathing again, and it looked slightly less disoriented.

"I think that was his main problem. . . But we'd better take him to the vet, just to be sure," Rin said.

Obito breathed a sigh of relief and Minato smiled, praising everyone on a job well-done. Even Kakashi's shoulders looked visibly less tense, as if he'd released a breath that he'd been holding.

"The land lord's wife is sure going to be happy," Rin chirped, giggling at the kitten, whose bright amber eyes shined new rigor.

Takara frowned at everyone's reaction to the tiny, breathing creature, whose insignificant life could so easily be replaced. It was not needed. It was one in thousands. . . It's master could easily get another kitten. She couldn't understand why everyone was so happy.

Such a trivial life couldn't matter much.

* * *

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	4. Blind Lies

Disclaimer: *sigh* Kakashi would be sooooo shirtless if I owned Naruto. All the time. Hm, pantless too. Maybe maskless. And headband-less. . . Boxerless. . . Ahem, on with the story! ^-^

* * *

**Blind Lies**

**"The truth, as the light, makes blind."**

**~ Albert Camus**

* * *

The sun was setting by the time the four had finished their mission report. Of course, the mention of Takara's near-death experience was skillfully avoided by their blond sensei. The Hokage simply stared in suspicion as Minato gave him a near blinding 'I'm-So-Perfect-That-I-Can't-Possibly-Be-Hiding-Anything' smile that would make even a thirteen-year-old Gai cry in shame. The Namikaze was relieved when the Hokage relented; he honestly didn't feel like being lectured this early in his righteous endeavors of giving the girl a second chance. He calmly told the Sandaime that Takara had been pushed into a puddle by Obito. It wasn't entirely unbelievable, seeing as it had been very rainy in Konoha for the past month. That is, it would have been believable if Takara and Obito hadn't shot Minato a withering glare. Nonetheless, the Sarutobi accepted the lie.

The kitten was deemed stable by the Inuzuka veterinary clinic, and the land lord's fiancé would pick up the kitten tomorrow. All in all, a happy ending.

Minato sighed when they finally exited the building.

"Well. . . that could have been a little smoother, but in the end I guess the results were okay. I hadn't expected you to finish the mission together, at any rate," Minato glanced from Takara to Kakashi, "I'd actually expected two of you to go off and do it on your own," Rin and Obito glanced at their stoic team mates as Minato continued, "But, it seems that we were lacking in something before that Takara has provided today as far as teamwork goes. . . The_ icing on the cake_, if you will."

Takara tilted her head, not understanding the idiom, but she assumed that it was a compliment.

"You mean the _person who covers our asses_." Obito mumbled, but grudgingly admitted that their new team mate was useful.

"You mean _the person to cover __**your**__ ass_, Obito." Kakashi corrected.

Takara felt herself twitch when the two boys suddenly got into another argument. Really, did they need to fight every time they opened their mouths?

She wondered if burning their mouths shut would constitute to untrustworthiness. Surely, Konoha would thank her for such well-deserved silence. For a genius and an Uchiha, the two sure knew how to make themselves seem as incompetent as newborns.

"Ma, ma, just consider this a well-done mission. We all did our part." Rin, obviously the peace-maker, said in her most soothing voice.

"Even if one of us almost died," Kakashi said almost scathingly, glancing pointedly at his newest team mate.

Takara stared ahead impassively. However, he could tell she was watching him out of her peripheral, and somehow that was just unnerving.

"Would you have acted differently?" she asked calmly.

"I would have, at the very least, been able to rescue myself," he retorted.

He could have sworn a felt a zap of chakra aimed directly towards him, but it was gone so quickly that he was certain he'd imagined it. However, Minato's reproachful look he gave Takara made him wonder if it really was just his imagination.

"Well, if you are so certain that you're abilities outmatch mine, we will have to prove it at a later date," she said almost nonchalantly, though there was a poisonous edge to her voice.

Kakashi snorted, not afraid of the girl in the least.

"Don't be too bothered by Kakashi. He's always got a stick somewhere up his ass," Obito said with a pointed glare at the silver-haired chuunin.

Just before another verbal assault ensued, Rin interrupted.

"You guys! How about we make Takara feel welcome, ne?"

"Exactly! Now, how about we all go out for some ramen? Just to welcome Takara into the village. My treat!" Minato said cheerily.

His three students instantly brightened, obviously hungry from their long day of cat-chasing and near-drowning. However, Takara tilted her head, her eyebrows pulled together in a frown. At her expression he three team mates looked at her, wondering what could make their new team mate look so serious and brooding.

"What is ramen?"

Silence.

She assumed that it was a type of food, but wasn't quite positive of what sort. Her previous diet usually consisted of watery porridge, bread, and sometimes rice.

"YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT RAMEN IS?" Obito exclaimed, voicing the questions etched onto everyone else's face.

"Ano. . . I don't."

"Surely, Takara-san, you've at least _heard_ of ramen!" Rin said incredulously, a delicate brown eyebrow arched in uestion.

Takara's frown deepened and she tried to recall any time she may have heard the word. When nothing came to mind, she shrugged and shook her head.

Their stares made her feel like an ignorant child, and that made her uncomfortable. Much to her mortification, she began to feel her cheeks heat up, though she didn't know if they could see it in the dimming light. Apparently, they could, because Obito suddenly grinned reassuringly. Takara flinched when his hand clapped onto one of her thin shoulders.

"Don't worry, Takara-chan! I'm sure you'll like it! I know I do!" Takara froze at his words.

While Kakashi proceeded to insult him about his choice of unhealthy food, Takara stared, dumfounded.

_Takara-__**chan**__. He called me –chan. I. . . I have not been called –chan by anyone else besides. . __**.them**__. . . .Does that mean I should use a suffix with his name as well?_

Minato raised an eyebrow at her dumbfounded expression.

"What's wrong?"

She looked up at him.

". . . Is it normal for team mates to use familiar suffixes?"

_Ah_, he thought in amusement, _it's so funny how she's concerned by such simple things._

"Well, Takara, I don't know if it's considered normal to use them right away, but if you want to be friends with someone, I don't see the harm in it."

Minato watched as the girls silver eyes swam with conflict. He was actually almost getting concerned. Was that smoke beginning to come out of her ears? He wouldn't be too surprised. After all, she was obviously overwhelmed with all that had happened to her over the last week. She'd only just discovered this morning that she would be living in Konoha, after all. He was convinced that the girl wouldn't use any familiar suffixes any time soon.

"Minato-sensei! Are you ready to go?" Rin called.

Minato glanced at his newest student, who still looked like a wet dog.

"Well . . . I don't know if Takara should go anywhere without drying first," he said.

Takara blinked, almost having forgotten that she was drenched. An involuntary shudder ran through her body, realizing just how cold it was. After all, it was still winter.

Without a word, the kunoichi pressed her hands together into a hand sign, and closed her eyes.

A gust of chakra suddenly whirled around her, and suddenly all of the water in her hair and clothing was in the air around her. Once she was dry, she dropped the jutsu, and the water splashed to the ground.

Minato raised his eyebrows.

"So you have a water affinity?"

Takara shrugged, but shifted uncomfortably on her feet.

"My main affinity is actually for wind," she said quietly, "But wind element is difficult to control without a teacher so. ."

Minato nodded slowly, a glimmer of interest in his azure eyes.

"Interesting. . ."

A resounding call was heard down the road, and the two turned to see the now more distant forms of Kakashi, Rin, and Obito. The Uchiha was waving Minato and Takara towards them, obviously impatient. The two shared a glance; one amused, and the other wary, before following the three pre-teens.

* * *

"Takara. The food isn't going to bite you," Minato said, his lips twitching as he fought an amused grin.

Takara's only response was a twitch of the shoulder, her silver eyes transfixed at the steaming bowl of broth and noodles in front of her, along with slabs of beef. The smell of the food was one that she actually remembered—she'd never actually smelled it up close before, but she knew that she had smelled in the mixture of scents that always filled any village.

It smelled a lot different than the sustenance that she'd been fed in the hideout. Of course, she had little to compare it to other than unseasoned animal meat and wild-grown vegetation, and she didn't know whether it smelled 'good-different' or 'bad-different'.

She had apprehensively allowed Obito to order for her, since she had no idea what the taste was supposed to be anyway. The result was the strong-smelling beef ramen sitting before her. And she hadn't shifted her gaze from it since.

On her right, was Rin closest to her, and then Obito. Farthest to her right was Minato-sensei. Kakashi was the only person to her left, and he had also not touched his ramen. It seemed as if all eyes had shifted to her.

Takara's curious expression switched to a frown, silver eyes glancing down at the paper-covered chopsticks. Carefully, she split the wooden pieces, shuddering from the sheer, absurd normalcy as the sticks made a pleasant 'pop'. How often had she heard that sound while on missions, held in the hands of cheerful, happy people?

She held the two pieces of wood awkwardly in her hands. She rapidly tried to figure out how to hold them, and eventually found a semi-comfortable position in her right hand. She dipped the sticks into the noodles, only to have the chopsticks slide from her fingers and fall into the bowl. She frowned.

How do you hold chopsticks?

She heard a discrete clearing of the throat, and she glanced to her right to meet the sapphire eyes of Minato, which were glowing with mirth. Her keen eyes immediately zoomed in on his hand, which was blatantly showing her the correct way to hold chopsticks. The mental picture now burned into her brain, Takara felt new confidence in her grip as she regrasped the chopsticks.

Though her hands wobbled slightly, she managed to escape impending embarrassment. Gathering a sufficient amount of noodles in the eating utensils, she discretely, if not hastily, shoved the noodles in her mouth. She made slurping sounds as she gathered the long strands. She chewed.

A yelp form her caught everyone's attention, and everyone turned to look at her. Takara sat rigid and straight, her silvery eyes side as could be and a hand clapped over her mouth. Obito and Rin stared at her with anxious eyes.

"What is it, Takara-san. Is it hot?" Rin asked, concerned, mentally remembering the proper way to heal burns.

However, that idea was abandoned as a slight flush of color painted Takara's pasty skin. A simple blush of pleasant surprise as she swallowed the mouthful of food. She opened her mouth to look with childishly round eyes at her team mates.

"It. . . It tastes. . . good. . . I think." She said, her voice a little higher pitched than usual in her amazement.

Obito cracked a huge grin, while Minato and Rin laughed in amusement.

"Of course it is! Ichiraku's ramen is the best!" Obito exclaimed before proving his point by shoveling more into his mouth.

Takara didn't waste any time, and also took another bite of the noodles, although she found that the art was more difficult than everyone else made it look. She had to try very hard to not have the broth drip all over her t-shirt as she slurped. The warmth filling her stomach was more enjoyable than anything she'd ever eaten before. But it wasn't as if she'd never had a warm meal before. She wondered why this meal was making her so happy.

When he bowl was half-way gone, she couldn't eat anymore. She wasn't used to eating more than one meal a day. Fighting back nausea, she glanced at her happily eating team mates. Well, most of them were eating anyway. Takara tilted her head, frowning at the boy beside her.

"How are you going to eat with your mask on?"

Kakashi looked at her, startling eyes immediately locking his. He shrugged.

"I have my ways."

Takara blinked slowly, not quite understanding his behavior.

"Would it not be easier to remove it?" she persisted, leaning closer to him simply out of curiosity.

The silver haired boy gave her a disdainful look . Although she didn't like to be touched, she also was oblivious as to what _boundaries_ meant. Moreover, her eyes were creeping him out. He decided to chase her away the way he knew best.

By being a jerk.

"My, my, already so eager to see my face. Spare me the flirting, will you?"

Takara didn't know what the word '_flirting'_ meant, but she could hear the condescending tone he was using, and she was not pleased. He would _**not **_speak to her as if he were her superior.

Kakashi felt himself tense as her silver eyes narrowed, flashing dangerously. Her lips curled upward slightly as if to snarl.

"I have no interest in seeing your face, Hatake-san. But I must say that your arrogance will do nothing to flatter whatever facial deformity you have," she said to him coldly, turning away and taking a sip of her water.

Minato clapped a hand over his mouth and not-so-discretely turned away from the scene, his shoulders trembling slightly as he fought the laughs that would be oh-so-not-sensei-like to emit. Obito was almost falling off of his chair, noodles half-spilling out of his mouth while he tried not to choke on them through his laughter. Rin was staring at the other girl in shock. Kakashi's dark eyes were wide, mouth agape beneath his mask.

_It seems as though Takara has a bit of a temper_, Minato thought as he fought to keep his composure, _Oh well_. _Kakashi needed a reality check anyway._

"T-Takara-san I assure you that Kakashi has no deformities," Rin stated nervously, glancing at the still dumbstruck Kakashi.

"I like you already, Takara-chan!" Obito cackled, holding his sides.

Takara shifted uncomfortably when he used to suffix again.

"Arigotou, Obi-Uchiha-s-san," she tried to remain calm, but her eyes widened when she realized that she had stuttered quite pathetically.

Minato almost (again, but for a different reason) choked on his food when he heard the girl try to use the boy's first name. Takara's head was down, mahogany hair falling into her face to try and hide her embarrassment, but Obito didn't seem to notice and sent her a wide, pearly white grin.

"You know, Takara-chan, you can call me by my first name if you want," he said.

Takara opened her mouth hastily, and then closed it again when her mouth felt dry. Swallowing, she tried again.

"O-O-Obi—Uchiha-san," she said, her voice taking on an uncertain tone as her silver eyes began swimming with conflict again. Her brain was not _wired f_or such familiarity.

She could call Rin by her first name without any conflict.. . but that was different. Rin was a female. Also, Rin had never told Takara her last name, so she had no choice in the matter..

"No, no. Obito! O-bi-to!" Obito pressed.

She tried again, but ended up choking halfway through his name and spluttered out his last name again. The impertinent Uchiha shook his head disapprovingly, though his lips were turned upward as if he were fighting a grin.

"_Oh-Bee-Toe_!"

Takara kind of wanted to go and hide in some dark, remote area of the forest.

Obito laughed at her border-line exasperated expression on her face.

"Um. . . Takara-san, so you're from the Hot Springs Village, right?" Rin said, deciding to rescue the girl from potential mortification, not knowing that she'd just made the situation worse.

Takara stiffened for a moment, but then relaxed, trying to keep up the lie.

". . . Yes."

"I see. I heard it's a pretty nice place. Did you come with the rest of your family?" Rin chirped happily, smiling at the other brunette.

Takara shifted uncomfortable at this, and opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it again. That word. . . _Family_. That word she had no clear-cut definition for.

Kakashi was quietly licking his wounded pride, but noticed the girls silence when Rin asked the girl that question. He saw the way Takara's silver yes looked downcast, but they didn't notice. She looked like she was trying to find the right words.

He suppressed a wince as Rin and Obito continued to look at her expectantly. Of course those two wouldn't understand what it was like to not have a family. They were safe and warm in the sheltering embraces of their families. They didn't understand what it meant to be alone.

Takara wasn't annoyed at Rin's inquiry. She thought that it was understandable that they were curious of her background and thought that she had nothing to hide. It didn't bother her so much that she didn't have a family. But it sometimes bothered her a great deal not _knowing_ what it was like to have one. Because she didn't know, she had trouble with the subject and anything related to it. What was a Mother? A Father? A Sibling?

Takara swallowed hard, and spoke in her usual, matter-of-fact tone. After all, she had gone over this story multiple times with Minato.

"No. I have dual citizenship with Konoha and the Hot-Springs country by birth. My mother sent me here to escape the war, but she couldn't come with me because she never married my father, and she wanted to stay with her relatives," Takara replied a little too quickly, but remained impassive.

A sharp gasp emitted from Rin, and Obito shifted uncomfortably. To Takara's left, Kakashi's eyes narrowed in a scrutinizing expression. Takara pointedly ignored him.

"O-Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't need to pry. . ." Rin said softly.

Takara frowned at the pity in Rin's voice. Why was her story so bad?

Takara was torn from her thoughts when she became painfully aware of how silent it was at the ramen stand. She glanced at the young Hatake, and noticed that he was also glancing at her. Steel and silver made sparks as they clashed.

"Is there something you wish to ask me?" Takara asked bluntly, not daunted at all by his critical stare.

"Not in particular," he replied tersely.

When she furrowed her brow, he realized that her facial expressions were awfully limited. Impassiveness, confusion, and cold anger were the only things he's really seen from her so far. He couldn't quite tell what she was thinking, and that bothered him. He didn't trust her, not at all.

"You are a horrible liar, Hatake-san," she said after a long silence, turning away from him.

Kakashi blinked in surprise, not expecting such a response. A horrible liar?

What a hypocrite. She was the one who was lying! Did she actually expect him to_ believe_ that bull-shit she had just told Rin and Obito?

Takara could feel his critical eyes on her, and her skin prickled with discomfort. She preoccupied herself with looking around at the various faces, trying to remember them all. The noisy bustle of the village was still new to her, and her ears were beginning to ring, not used to being subjected to so much noise at one time. She became so enthralled with the subtle rhythm and meaningless chatter of the citizens, that she jumped when suddenly loud crackling sounds burst from behind her.

She whirled around in her stool, her heart pounding in her ears while her eyes darted around for any sign of danger. However, she restrained herself like her master had advised before.

She saw a few children running through the street, mischievous grins on their faces as yells sounded from behind them. In their hands, were large rolls of something that smelled to Takara like paper bombs.

She didn't get to voice her concern before one of the boys dropped a few rolls very close to the ramen stand, cackling as he made a hand sign to set them off. There were dozens of loud pops that filled the air, and bright flashes of white light.

Apparently, some academy students had gotten creative with some firecrackers, adding chakra to the explosion to make them larger and brighter. Fun for them, but some people were inconvenienced.

Some people more than others.

"Takara-chan?"

The startled voice of Obito brought all eyes to the gangly kunoichi.

"Takara?" Minato asked in shock when the girl suddenly clutched her eyes, doubling over like she'd been punched in the stomach.

Kakashi watched in surprise as tears began pouring from the girls eyes, the lower half of her face twisted in pain. In alarm, he tensed, leaning forward when the girl looked like she was about to fall out of her stool.

"Takara? What is it?" Rin asked, worry lacing his tone now as Minato grasped the Takara's arm.

"Bright," she gasped out, almost digging her nails into her eyelids.

Minato pried her hands away from her eyes before she did them damage, his blue eyes narrowed. Takara's face was scrunched up, her eyes so clenched shut that the muscles were twitching. A few tears slipped from between her eyelids. Whether it was from the pain or from the eye-damage, Minato didn't know.

Rin nudged her way beside him, and slowly reached for the pained kunoichi's eyes. Immediately, Takara recoiled, an almost animalistic hiss sliding in between her teeth. Everyone flinched at the sound.

"Let Rin see, Takara. You need to open them, okay?" he said quietly.

Takara took deep breaths, trying to ease the stabbing explosions of pain throughout her head, as if her brain was playing with explosives as well. Slowly, she cracked her eyes opened, not surprised by what she was greeted with. But even so, she stiffened.

Everyone sucked in a sharp breath of air.

Now a smoky white, appearing as if they didn't have an iris or a pupil, Takara's eyes stared sightlessly in front of her, rimmed with red because of the popped blood vessels. They burned and stung, and she had a god-awful headache, but she was coherent and for that she was thankful. The damage was minimal.

"Takara, I think you should go to the hospital," Rin said slowly, but Takara shook her head, gently shrugging out of Minato's grip.

"Takara. . ." Minato said warningly.

"It's okay, master. It is only temporary. My sight should return by morning at the latest," she said calmly, pinning her eyes on where she assumed Minato was.

Kakashi, eyes still wide, was caught between the confusion of what just happened, and the fact that Takara had called his sensei 'master'. However he shoved that to the back of his mind and addressed the situation at hand.

"So this has happened before?"

Takara's now white eyes looked in his direction, but didn't focus on him. If anything, he thought that they were even freakier than they were before.

"Yes," was all she said, much to his annoyance, but he hadn't expected her to say much more.

"At any rate," Minato interrupted, "I think I should take Takara to her home. I don't want her blindly running around through unfamiliar streets," he said as he rose from his stool, throwing a number of bills onto the counter. "Sorry I have to leave you all," the blond said with an apologetic grin.

Kakashi shook his head while the rest of the team muttered acceptance. The situation certainly did call for that action.

But that didn't mean Kakashi wasn't any less wary of the newest addition to his team, especially when she was hiding so much. Was he the only one who was noticing it?

Obviously, by the blissfully worried expressions on his team mates' faces.

"I will see you tomorrow, Rin-san, O-O-Uchiha-san . . . . . Hatake-san," she said, her sightless eyes flashing with slight annoyance.

At what, the Hatake didn't know, but he couldn't help but feel annoyed that the girl had even thought about trying to use his first name. And she _had _thought it. He could tell by the long pause.

He didn't trust her at all, and judging by the look in her eyes, she knew it too.

_Good,_ he thought, _then she knows to keep her distance_.

* * *

A/N: For anyone doesn't know, calling a person by their first name in Japan is considered impolite if you are not well acquainted, or if you haven't been given permission to do so. Also, certain suffixes such as -chan indicate familiarity as well.

Reviews are appreciated :) Thank you to those who have done so already!


	5. Feelings

Disclaimer: Naruto? No, no. If I had owned it, it would be called 'Kakashi', seeing as he is by far the coolest guy on the show. . . But I digress.

* * *

**_Feelings_**

_I've seen it before-_

_this light, so warm,_

_but I know if I touch,_

_it will twist and deform._

_It dances before my eyes_

_But I must leave it be_

_Remind my aching heart _

_I was never meant to see._

_It prods and pokes_

_With a kindness so sweet._

_A disgusting thing such as I_

_could never deserve such a treat._

_So I watch that lovely light_

_As it reaches the stars_

_Along with others, so bright,_

_while I watch from afar._

_And again in darkness_

_I silently weep._

_Because of the loneliness and_

_the promise I couldn't keep.__  
_

_"Kara-chan! You're my best friend!"_

_

* * *

_

"And this will look really good with your eyes! Oh! How about this? Perfect for your hair!"

Takara blinked, the pile of clothes in her arms becoming steadily higher until she could no longer see what was in front of her. But Takara didn't know any better than to allow Rin to continue her almost obscene, girlish chatter as she proceeded with her 'mission'. Several civilians jumped, startled, as Rin dashed about with speed only expected of a kunoichi, even if it wasn't extraordinary by shinobi standards. The girl hardly noticed the way she was unsettling the other customers, far too eager with the prospect of bonding with another female of her age instead of two argumentative boys.

Takara felt that, after a garment had been dumped onto her head (so very girly and so, so _pink)_, that clothes-shopping was one thing -no matter how expected of a pre-teen girl—that she would never get used to.

* * *

**Earlier That Morning**

Takara arrived to the training grounds that day wearing something similar to yesterday's attire. The shorts were too big, belonging to Minato's wife, and the big T-shirt hung off of one shoulder, covered by an oversized jacket. This time, she was wearing standard shinobi sandals, but other than that, Takara's clothing couldn't possibly be easy to maneuver in.

Rin had confronted Takara about it, and discovered that not only was she lacking in clothes that fit her properly, claiming that she had lost her luggage during her trip to Konoha, but she also lacked. . . well. . _. proper_ under-garments. Takara told her that she was securing her chest with bandages.

Takara didn't really understand why Rin had gaped at her like that, but she _somehow_ got it into her head that it was because she had wrapped herself incorrectly that her team mate was staring at her like that. Tilting her head, she asked Rin, exactly, "Should I remove them?". When Rin still stood there, dumbfounded, Takara took it as conformation and tried to remove the bandages then and there. Minato had never performed his 'Flying Thunder God' technique faster before in his life, grabbing Takara's arm before she could finish unwrapping the bandages from under her shirt. But the damage had already been done.

Rin had successfully saved Obito from dying of blood-loss, stuffing gauze up his nose to stop the blood flow. Kakashi, without allowing anyone to see the distraught expression on his face, knocked the delirious, still tomato-faced Uchiha unconscious, picked him up, and disappeared.

Rin, now bright red with chagrin as well and ignoring Takara's look of utter confusion, then requested that she be allowed to take Takara shopping that day instead of training. Minato thought back over the events of that morning, and consented.

Normally, he wouldn't allow such a thing, but then he thought about having to take an adolescent girl clothes shopping, and blanked. He didn't know the first thing about young girl's clothing. And by the expression on Takara's face, she had no idea what, erm_, bras_ were to begin with.

And as much as he cared about the girl, there were some things that even he wouldn't be able to do without dying a little inside.

He also cared about his two boys too much to have them suffer like that again. There was only so much a pubescent boy could do to keep his hormones under control_ without_ having to realize that their female team mates were growing up as well.

There was also the fact that her obvious lack of fashion sense made her noticeable. He didn't think that Takara minded what she wore, but he didn't want her to stand out more than she already did. And people would eventually recognize the symbol on Takara's shirt as an Uzumaki symbol, and that would raise questions. No one was supposed to know yet that she was living with him.

That, and he thought that spending time with a normal teenage girl would be good for Takara. . .

And for his sanity.

* * *

**Present Time**

Takara observed in fascination, carefully noting how the other females her age in the clean, white store were trying on clothes. They walked around in painful looking footwear, and wore clothes that could hardly be easy to move in. Her silver eyes assessed the squeals of delight from two older girls who were holding up an article of, exclaiming how cute and sexy it was. She had no idea what those words meant, but her interest especially perked up when the girls mentioned something about the clothing being 'easily maneuverable and allowing flexibility'. Takara looked on in curiosity, before approaching to two girls and staring with wide, curious eyes.

"This piece of clothing. . . Is it really that beneficial?"

* * *

Rin appeared a few minutes later with more clothing, only to find Takara trying on an article of clothing that she'd found herself. Rin's jaw dropped, paling slightly.

"T-Takara-san. . . What are you wearing?" she managed to stammer in her horror.

It was a black, halter mini dress that didn't have any back. It reached only a few inches past her posterior and was very tight, clinging to the mahogany-haired girl's lithe form. Rin had to admit, once the girl filled out, she would have a nice figure.

But that dress was definitely not what any self-respecting kunoichi—or female in general—would wear.

The girl tilted her head, brushing her unruly hair from her face.

"What is wrong? Is this unacceptable? It certainly allows versatility," the long-legged kunoichi said, her brows furrowed in almost worry. Had she gotten it wrong?

"Takara. . . That dress . . . isn't shinobi attire, and it'll. . ." Rin was trying to come up with something that the girl in front of her would understand. Obviously, the girl was confused. "It'll rip! Yeah! It'll rip far too easily! We should stick to the clothing in the kunoichi section, ne?" she finished, laughing nervously, just itching to rip the scandalous dress off of the infuriatingly naïve kunoichi.

Takara's frown deepened, suddenly feeling very frustrated. Sighing, the girl sat down in one of the chairs outside of the dressing room.

"I don't know if I am very good at this 'shopping'," she muttered, silver eyes discouraged.

Rin shook her head, walking towards the tall girl and sitting down beside her. There was a long moment, before Rin suddenly spoke.

"Takara-san. . . I'm going to be honest. . . I don't think your background story is the truth."

Takara jerked her head up, her silver eyes flashing with surprise and anxiety at the other girl's words. Perhaps she was more perceptive than she had thought.

Rin gave her one of her many kind smiles.

"You . . . don't behave like most other girls, Takara-san. You also seem very naïve to many things that are _normal._ It's hard to miss," Rin explained to the other brunette.

There was a long silence, and Takara swallowed.

"Is it really that obvious?" she asked after a long silence.

Rin laughed.

"It was also the fact that you had such strange and extensive injuries. Minato-sensei knows about them, but he won't tell me. So of course I'm suspicious," Rin said airily, "But I don't think Kakashi or Obito are quite aware of those."

Takara stared at the girl in apprehension, silver eyes narrowed.

"And yet you do not attack me or treat me as an enemy?" she said slowly, watching her carefully, just in case the kunoichi lunged.

Though petite, Takara didn't automatically assume that Rin had no skills. After all, she herself wasn't a very intimidating looking person.

Rin looked surprised, arching a delicate eyebrow.

"Why would I do that? You're my team mate!" she said almost severely, a hand on her hip.

Takara only frowned deeper, not understanding.

"I trust you!" Rin tried again.

If Takara frowned any more than she was right now, her eyes would end up being sucked under her eyebrows. Rin sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Oh for the love of Kami—You are my _friend_!" Rin said, utterly exasperated by the girl's almost unforgivable ignorance.

Takara's eyes widened, and Rin looked pleased that she finally gotten at least a different reaction to her.

_Friend._

_Noun. Most common definition: __one attached to another by affection or esteem._

Takara's mind whirled.

How many times had she read and re-read that definition in countless dictionaries at Orochimaru's base? How many times had she spied on people and their friends whom she didn't even know during night-time mission for Orochimaru?

"W-What?" she asked, thinking that she hadn't heard Rin correctly.

Rin promptly, flicked the other girl in the nose. Takara grasped her nose in shock.

"You. Are. My. _Friend_." Rin laughed, her brown eyes thoroughly amused, "I swear, Takara-san. Have you never had a friend before?"

The words were said jokingly, but they triggered something that Takara had buried deep, deep within her mind, so that she'd never had to deal with it again. Her silver eyes flashed, a stabbing pain in her heart a reminder of a wound that she thought had been long forgotten. The pain left her breathless.

_Bright amber eyes. Dirty blond hair. A mischievous smile._

Her throat went dry, and she swallowed hard and forced herself to breath as her heart sped up.

"_We'll always be friends, right Takara-chan?"_

The pounding in her ears increased, and she grabbed her head with one hand in an attempt to stop the spinning.

"_I'll always be by your side!"_

She heard a distant voice, but over her thrashing heart and ragged breathing, it made no sense to her.

"_P-Promise me. . . t-that I won't b-be. . . your last f-f-friend." "_

A warm hand grasped her arm, and the voice echoed.

"_Takara-chan."_

"_Takara-chan."_

"**Takara-chan**!"

Finally, the new voice broke into her thoughts, tugging her from the icy claws of her dark memories. Takara gasped for air, cold sweat beating on her forehead as her silver eyes, wide with constricted pupils, fearfully looked around her, every muscle tensed as if ready to attack.

"Takara-chan?"

Finally, Takara looked at Rin, whose chocolate brown eyes were bright with worry, clasping her arm. Suddenly, those kind hands felt like rusty nails against her flesh, and she ripped her arms away is if she were burned. The way she was looking at her with. . . .

_Concern!_

It made Takara want to laugh bitterly. Concern? For someone like her? Takara's head spin again as she shook her head, limbs trembling.

"Takara-chan? W-Was it something I said? I-I didn't mean it. Y-You've probably had a bunch of friends! I-I only want to be your friend too-"

"_**NO!**__"_

Her guttural snarl brought alarmed looks from all over the store, and Rin shrank away from Takara, suddenly very frightened.

Her silver eyes were narrowed dangerously, whirring with things so dark that Rin couldn't find words to describe them. Her face was pale with rage, a malicious chakra was encasing the kunoichi, daring anyone to touch her.

At that moment, Takara did not look ignorant of naïve.

She simply looked terrifying.

"_No! We are __**not **__friends! We __**cannot **__be friends! We will __**never**__ be friends! __**EVER!**__"_

Rin opened her mouth, her eyes shining with hurt, but Takara was faster. Before Rin could blink, the girl stood up and bolted out of the shop into the gloomy day.

She ran down the street, weaving between the people who were trying to make it home before the rain poured down. Many yelped when they saw the flash of reddish-brown about to hit them, only to avoid them at the last possible moment, but Takara didn't care.

She needed to get as far away from all these people as she could.

All of these stupid, ignorant, _blinded _people who lived sheltered and content this cozy village of happiness. None of them, not even most of the shinobi, could even imagine what it was like outside of their snug little home. She didn't belong with them.

Takara ran until the buildings disappeared, and she found herself in a vast area on the far side of the village, probably a training ground that wasn't so commonly used. She sensed nobody in her vicinity, and hoped that she would be able to breathe again, not feeling crushed and alone anymore.

Maybe being all alone here would feel less lonely than being in the village. The vacancy she had felt when she served under Orochimaru didn't allow for loneliness; to feel lonely, you had to experience the presence of precious people. Vacancy was the only thing that would keep her safe. It had before.

Everything was too new. Everything was happening too fast. She couldn't keep up with the emotions and the strange feelings that yanked viscously on her heart at the least suspecting moments. She didn't know how to handle these emotions—things that she didn't even know she was capable of feeling anymore.

It frightened her. It made her weak. It clouded her judgment. And, in the end, it would hurt more than anything else ever could.

It was then, just as her luck would have it, the rain began to fall from the bitter, cold sky. Large, ice-cold droplets nipped cruelly at her cheeks, seeping through the over-sized, shockingly orange jacket that kept her from freezing. Her body shook, but mostly not from the cold. A shinobi should be hardened to such weather.

She shook with the ball of emotions that she fought to repress as it began to expand. Unable to put a word to it, she could only describe what she was feeling as an emotional illness; she felt sick to her stomach, and her heart clenched painfully. Out of reflex, her right arm latched onto her left shoulder and her left arm wrapped around her stomach, as if the pain would ease if she did so. A feral snarl slid through her lips, startled by the feeling and utterly confused by it.

"What is wrong with me?" she hissed at no one, but she felt surprised when her voice came out thick and strangled.

She tried swallowing, and realized that her throat felt tight and sore, and her chest was heaving as if she'd just gone running. But instead of the exhilarated breathes one had after running, these breaths were strained and painful.

Another snarl slid through her lips, and she whirled around at a tree, kicking it with as much force as she could. A shooting pain raced up her leg, and for a moment the ache was a pleasant deviation from the agony in her chest. But her anger only increased when the tree stood tall and unshaken. Unable to hurt it, or even dent it. Standing there like a big obstacle that she had no way of overcoming, mocking her.

Just like these stupid _feelings._

A growl ripped from her throat, finally unable to control her anger anymore. Focusing wind chakra to her hands, she swiped her hands in front of her in a sideways karate-chop motion. Two large, crescent shaped blades emitted from her hands, striking the infuriating tree mercilessly and without relent. Takara watched with twisted satisfaction as the tree came falling to the ground, the resounding crash mingling with the roar of the rain like a resentful and cacophonous symphony.

But the burning, suffocating emotions were still there, licking like acid at her throat. She felt like she needed to _do_ something, desperately, but she didn't know what, and that frustrated her all the more.

Unable to think of anything else, Takara released more blades on another innocent tree, and that same sardonic contentment came back, but only briefly. But maybe if she continued, it would stay longer.

The confused kunoichi continued to slice down the trees, hoping to rid her of the inescapable agony.

Maybe if it hadn't been so angry, she would have stopped and noticed that it wasn't working.

* * *

Kakashi did_ not_ like the rain.

Not only was it uncomfortable to be wet in the rain, and to get rainwater in his sandals, but it also affected his sense of smell. Aside from his nose, none of his other senses were especially note-worthy, and when it rained, it only made finding scents a more difficult to track.

And, of course, the person he was tracking decided to run off in the middle of a heavily populated area, filled with scents that blended together, in the rain. He thought he simply distrusted Takara before, but as of this moment, he very much disliked her.

Because, even though most people didn't know it, Hatake Kakashi _despised_ the rain.

The silver-haired boy grumbled irately as he leaped from building to building, sniffing the air and trying to catch a whiff of the girl. He sighed again when he came up with nothing. Another infuriatingly _convenient_ thing about Takara was that she had a very non-distinguishable scent. She smelled like earth and rain- for lack of anything better to compare it to. The scent wasn't all around unpleasant, but in a world that was made of, well, earth, that was currently raining, he silently wished that she wore the overbearingly sweet perfume that Rin did. This would make the matter so much easier. But, Takara was probably the only member of the female population that didn't wear anything to mask her natural odor, and therefore smelled like earth and rain, so he should stop complaining and think of something else. He sighed, and began to try and wonder where Takara would go.

But how could he? He knew nothing about the quiet, solemn girl. But, he wasn't a genius for nothing. He should be able to infer something from the way she acts. . .

She didn't like to talk. She was uncomfortable around unfamiliar things. She was naïve to many things. She had a distinct lack of emotions. She liked to be alone. . .

A little light-bulb flashed in his head.

Liking to be alone was something that he could understand. Something he could relate to. He scratched his head in thought.

_Now, where would I go if I wanted to be alone?_

_

* * *

_

Yeah. The first place he thought about was the training grounds. After all, all he did with his spare time was train. . .

1) Wake up before dawn and train.

2) Meet his team and train.

3) Eat lunch and then train.

4) Go to the training grounds and train.

5) Eat dinner and train.

6) Go home and. . . feed his dogs (hah!)

7) Train in his living room.

8) Go to bed. . . and think about training.

And Repeat.

Kakashi was essentially a train-o-holic; even he couldn't deny it. But he felt consolation while he trained. It made him feel like he would become invincible if he trained hard enough, so that he could complete any mission thrown at him and never be ridiculed or shamed.

He scratched his head, sighing when he could catch no familiar scent. Sighing, he almost laughed at himself for thinking that a girl would be out in this weather, simply training. Call him sexist, but he had never in his twelve years seen a member of the female species so devoted to training. Shaking his head at the absurdity, he was about to leave when a crash in the distance was almost drowned out by the wailing wind. Quietly, he went to assess the situation.

A little too close apparently, because he suddenly found himself in the way of a falling tree. Cursing, he silently leaped away from the obstruction, his foot very nearly being crushed under it. Immediately, he got into a defensive crouch, drawing a kunai. Silently, he crawled behind the now-fallen tree, using it as cover. The tree was at an angle against its stump, leaving a good look-out point from underneath the trunk. He carefully peered around the trunk, his dark grey eyes assessing the situation.

A lone figure, cloaked in the downpour, was hunched over in an aggressive attack position. His skin prickled with the sudden erratic pulse of rage-filled chakra, his breath catching in his throat at the sheer force of it. His muscles tensed as he tried to figure out what he should do in this situation. Through the rain, he couldn't tell who this person was. He or she could either be a fellow shinobi, or an enemy. He was leaning towards the latter, seeing as the chakra was very unfamiliar and was singed with something that he didn't like.

He watched as a burst of chakra suddenly exploded from the person's hands, slashing another tree that fell to join its brethren. The chakra sliced through the base of the tree as if it were tissue paper with deadly precision. The chakra blade continued onwards even after going through the tree, smashing against the one behind it in a small explosion. He watched warily as the figure's shoulders heaved heavily, trembling. The figure stood like that for so long, Kakashi wondered if it was time for him to make his presence known. Just before he stood up, he almost jumped when the figure suddenly let out a loud shriek that cut through the sound of rain like a knife. He felt goose bumps rise on his skin, not from the cold.

Such a cry was not one of any physical trauma, but one of confusion, frustration, rage, and inconceivable agony.

He almost cringed when the figure leaped into the air, and began swiping their arms around back and forth in a complex pattern, each deadly swing of their arm emitting a razor-sharp blade of chakra. One by one, trees began to fall, not standing a chance against the merciless daggers.

The figure landed silently, shoulders still hunched, muscles still shaking, and when they tensed, Kakashi was sure that they'd unleash a fresh torrent of rage upon the innocent foliage. However, the figure promptly fell to its knees, and simply sat there. The figure remained unmoved for many minutes, so Kakashi finally took his chance and began to approach the figure.

He decided to approach from the front. Enemy or not, many shinobi would react to another shinobi approaching from behind badly, especially since they were in the midst of a war. A ninja or anyone living in a shinobi village would almost never purposely approach a shinobi from behind. Those ignorant to this fact could find out soon enough when they find cold metal pressed against their neck.

Kakashi made sure his chakra was unmasked as well, just for good measure. Slowly and carefully he closed the distance between them, all the while straining to see who exactly the person was before he got there. However, one could barely see five feet in front of them clearly in this downpour.

At this point, he could tell that the person was female. His pace increased when he thought he caught a glimpse of mahogany. His eyes widened.

"Takara-san," he called, sprinting towards her.

"I see that you have finally decided to show yourself," a soft voice, nearly drowned by the rain, answered. But the voice, usually so emotionless, was filled with a strange sardonic tone that chilled Kakashi to the bone.

He flinched inwardly, though he was somehow unsurprised that she had sensed him long ago.

"I assume that you are not here of your own will," she continued, "Is master asking for me?"

Kakashi frowned again at the word 'master'.

"Minato-sensei is not our master. He is our teacher," he corrected.

A strange sound split Takara's pale lips, a cross between a bitter chuckle and a snort.

"He is not _our_ teacher. He is _your _teacher, and _my_ master."

Kakashi was quiet for awhile, frowning.

Takara let out another cutting chuckle.

"You are his student. I am not," she said as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Okay. If you say so," he said slowly, wondering if this girl had any mental health issues he should be aware of, "Anyway, you should get out of the rain. It's cold outside."

Takara titled her head, although she still didn't look at him, and seemed to contemplate for a moment.

"It does not matter."

Kakashi blinked.

"You're going to get sick."

"It does not matter."

Okay. That was it.

Kakashi was outside in the middle of the coldest part of winter in _rainstorm_, soaking wet and tired from the training session with his sensei in a _rainstorm, _standing in front of an irritating, mysterious, insufferable pre-teen girl who didn't behave like anyone he'd ever met in his entire life in a_ rainstorm_.

As stated before, Kakashi had little patience. Nor did he like the rain.

And being outside in an ice-cold _rainstorm_ trying to convince an obviously unstable kunoichi to leave the training grounds was testing his already short patience. It was a miracle that he hadn't snapped already. Briefly, he wondered if he had sprouted a halo within the last hour.

"Wrong. It doesn't matter to _me_," he bit out, "_**I**_ could care less, but Minato-sensei has given me the order to find you and make sure that you're okay, and that is exactly what I'm going to do."

Before she could protest, he reached down, pulling Takara's arm over his shoulder while wrapping one arm around her waist. He shuddered at the coldness of her skin, and felt another flicker of annoyance at the fact that she was sucking precious heat from his already chilled body. In case you couldn't tell, Kakashi didn't particularly like the cold as well. Bracing himself, he expected to have to struggle to stand, but was surprised when his muscles lifted the both of them with almost disturbing ease. Feeling a little sick at her weight, he very nearly scoffed. She was another idiotic teenage girl on one of their ridiculous diets.

Once he was sure the girl wouldn't slip off of his shoulder, he noted that she was taller than him, making the position a little awkward. Her head was drooped forward, tangled mahogany locks sticking to her face, neck, and back. Her face was so pallid that she was easily a few shades paler than Kakashi (that in itself is a very frightening thought), and her lips were a little blue. Worst of all—or possibly best of all, for all Kakashi knew—her eyes were completely vacant. Unresponsive. Dead. Those lifeless irises didn't look at anything with their usual edge, and for one chilling, disturbing moment, Kakashi felt as if he were carrying a lifeless corpse.

"Leave me here," almost inaudible whisper slid through blue lips.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not going to do that," he said icily.

"You want to."

"As much as I'd like to, I can't," he bit back.

"You should."

Kakashi glanced at her again, his silvery eyebrows pulled together in question, but he didn't bother answering the girl in her obviously delirious state. It looked like she was about to pass out soon anyway, probably from chakra depletion.

_Idiotic girl. _

He scowled, and took off to find his sensei while inwardly wondering as to who would be so masochistic as to be out here in the cold when her body was obviously not built to stand up to it. Training in such conditions seemed very idiotic.

Oh, wait, he did that. . . Let's forget that last sentence.

But she was getting awfully pale, he mused, and increased his pace.

After all, she wasn't allowed to die yet. Not until he found out what he wanted to know.

* * *

A/N: So this chapter was wrather fun to write ^-^ I find that torturing canon characters is too much fun. . . Anyway, reviews are welcome!

****** Also, that poem at the top is an origional. I know. I'm a HORRIBLE poet. I think I'll stick to writing fiction :)


	6. of Dogs and Tea

Disclaimer: Just a whimsical writer here

* * *

**_Of Dogs and Tea_**

**"_Funny how the deepest of bonds begin in the most bizarre ways, ne Kara-chan?"_**

_Takara looked at that face. That face that could still smile despite it all. She hated that face._

_She loved that face._

_

* * *

_

Takara woke up tied to a bed. A bed, mind you, that wasn't in her master's home. A bed that was hard, rumpled, and smelled like sandalwood, pine trees, and a distinctly male odor.

Her mind whirring at an impossibly fast pace, and thinking that she was _so done_ with waking up in strange places, she strained against her binds, assessing what type of rope was binding her. The familiar tingling on her wrists told her that it was chakra binding, and that there was no way she would be able to break it. Sadly, the chakra in the bonds was entirely incompatible with hers, a snap of electricity almost causing her to gasp when she tried to stir her water and wind based chakra. The strange smell of ozone tickled her nose, and her wrists were now burnt, but that didn't really matter. So she wouldn't alert her captor of her awakening, she relaxed and instead took in every part of her surroundings.

She was lying on a single, twin sized bed that was in the corner. There was a shelf above her head, covered in books and scrolls, but there was nothing on the scrolls that gave away anything about her captor. On the opposite side of the room, there was a small bathroom and beside that, there was a closet. To the wall on her left, there was a small desk, scattered with various items. No papers, of course, that would at least give her an idea of where she was.

She remembered the cold rain, and then there were falling trees, weariness, and an angry voice. The last thing she remembered was a warm body, and then everything became blurry. She was still soaking wet, effectively drenching the sheets under her, but she somehow felt relieved to know that no one had taken her clothes off. Even if the clothing was itchy and cold.

Takara swallowed, wondering at the peculiar scratchy, uncomfortable sensation in the back of her throat. She swallowed again, and this time the sensation turned into a burn that had her hacking like a choking animal. The coughing brought a stab of pain to her head, and suddenly the room spun a little bit. A strange whining sound emitted from her chest at her discomfort. Darn it, she had gotten sick.

"Ah. So you're awake."

The voice startled her, and through her dizziness she looked wildly around the room, but could see no one. But suddenly, a ball of brown fur leaped over the edge of the bed, right on her stomach (causing her to cough again), and gave her the blankest stare in the world. The small, furry creature curled up on her stomach stared at her with droopy, completely impassive eyes.

"Yo," it said in it said in a puppy voice.

Takara frowned at the inconsiderate creature, which was currently crushing her intestines. The fact that it was speaking did not surprise her. She had seen her fair share of summons and ninja companions.

"Where am I?" she demanded to know.

The dog, unruffled by the hostility in her voice, only scratched his ear with his hind leg.

"You're in my master's home. Very strange, seeing as he has never brought home any friends before," the puppy looked at her critically, "Especially females."

Takara frowned at the word 'friends'.

"Who is your master?"

The dog yawned, "Not my place to tell."

"Where is your master now?"

The dog shrugged. "Hell if I know."

Takara huffed this time, annoyance flashing in her silver irises.

"You are an annoying summon."

"I try."

Takara blew a strand of drenched mahogany hair from her face. The dog shifted on her stomach, and she winced as its tiny claws dug into her thin frame.

"Anyway, you should really eat more. You'd be a lot more comfortable if you weren't so thin," the puppy oh-so-helpfully advised, yawning broadly.

She felt nauseous all of a sudden at the pressure on her stomach, and not trusting herself to open her mouth, she settled for glaring at the creature. It didn't even seem to be ruffled.

"You're even scrawnier than my master, and that's saying something. Where did you come from, the graveyard? Because you feel like a bag of bones." The dog continued.

Takara felt the urge to roll her eyes, something that she'd never done because it was a sign of disrespect; she wondered if it felt strange.

She knew that she was too thin, but it wasn't that bad. . . Was it?

"And how old are you? Because I was lying on your chest earlier and let me tell you," The dog fixed her with an almost disbelieving look, "You're so flat, you should call AAA."

Takara blinked slowly, trying to decipher what he had said into common language. The dog looked at her as if she were handicapped.

"You have no chest," he revised.

Takara could feel her face redden at his words, surprised that the words caused more discomfort than she thought they should. She may have been ignorant about a lot of things (a_ lot_ of things) but she had been on enough nocturnal missions to know what adults did during their night lives. Along the way, thanks to her observational skills, she had realized that many men preferred . . . voluptuous women. Which Takara knew that she was not. She was quite aware that she had a rather underdeveloped chest, even as far as twelve-year-olds went, but she had never really dwelled on it. She didn't think that anyone else really noticed either.

"Like, _as_ _flat as a board_."

Apparently they did.

Takara glared at the dog even harder, cursing its inability to burst into flames.

"Would you be so kind as to _be quiet_?" she bit out. The world was still spinning and she couldn't seem to focus on the dog enough to glare anymore, and that only frustrated her more. "Or are you incapable of being decent?"

"Sorry, I'm not a _'kind'_ kind of dog."

"_I concur_," she spat back, "You insufferable creature."

The puppy gave her a look.

"Smelly human."

Takara's glare intensified. She couldn't help the way she smelled at the moment.

"You do not smell very appealing yourself."

The dog smirked.

"Touché," he replied, before he yawned again. Stretching, (again, digging his nails into her stomach), and _thoughtfully _propelled himself off of her stomach and onto the end of the bed. Takara coughed some more.

The puppy regarded her carefully for a moment, scrutinizing her, judging her. Takara could feel it, and somehow it unnerved her.

"You know, you're actually kind of interesting when you let yourself go a little," he commented.

"What. . . do you mean. . . by that?" she said in between painful coughs.

"It means you should stop trying to be a servant, and try to be _human_ instead," it replied, licking its paws, "Live a little. You're an idiotic teenage female, not a _rock _with the ability of speech."

Takara was silent for awhile, staring at the ceiling since she was not really able to look at the dog now without straining her eyes.

"You do not understand. I am meant to be a tool, and nothing more," she said finally, firmly.

The puppy snorted.

"According to who? You?"

Takara frowned, silver eyes narrowing at the dog's frustrating questions.

"According to-" she snapped, but stopped mid sentence, mouth open. The dog watched as her eyes went from indignant to confused. "A-According to. . . ."

According to the prison guards. According to the scientists. According to Orochimaru.

"Have you ever made a decision for yourself even _**once**_**?**"

Takara turned her head to the side, willing the creature to stop staring at her.

"Why is everyone asking me these questions? And saying all of these things to me?" she said after a moment of silence. "Is it not enough that I am alive and living in this village?"

"That depends. Are you_ living_ or are you just _alive_? And there is a big difference between_ living_ in the village and being a _part _of it."

Takara was silent.

"Did it ever occur to that just mayb_e_ there are people out there who are trying to _help _you?" he asked in exasperation.

"How do you know so much about me?" Takara asked quietly.

At this, the puppy grinned and said, "I don't. Dog's intuition."

"You are very perceptive," the girl said with a frown, wishing that she could pick up the infuriating creature by the scruff and shake it like a rag doll.

"I am a nin-hound, after all!" the puppy stated proudly.

"Nin-hound _in training_."

Both Takara and the puppy yelped in surprise at the presence in the room.

And there, in all of his irritable, dripping-wet glory, was Kakashi Hatake; the boy genius, the young heart-throb of Konoha, the train-o-holic, rule-loving, one-track-minded chuunin.

"Pakkun, I left you here to watch her, not strike up conversation."

Pakkun didn't appear to be bothered by the scolding. He must receive them often.

"I'm not a guard dog. If you wanted one, you should have summoned Bull," he replied coolly.

Kakashi gave him a deadpan look."Bull would have either crushed her, or smothered her with his tongue."

Pakkun appeared to shrug in a dog-like manner.

"It wouldn't be my problem."

Nice to know he cared.

"Um, Hatake-san," both pairs of eyes were on Takara now, "Can you untie me now?"

Kakashi blinked as if he had forgotten she was there, before making a swift hand sign. Takara almost sighed in relief when the chakra binds dispelled into thin air. She rubbed her soar wrists before pushing herself into a sitting position. The world swayed strangely, and she repressed a groan, clutching her head.

"You look horrible," Kakashi said bluntly.

"Yes, because _every _female wants to be told that," Pakkun snorted, "You will _never _get laid if you talk to females like that."

Takara was mildly impressed by the glare that Kakashi was giving his puppy.

"I am sorry, but what does 'laid' mean in this context?" she asked. Kakashi blinked at her, opened his mouth, but then closed it again, looking away.

"It's. . . . nothing you need to concern yourself with," he said a little too quickly.

Pakkun began to laugh. And he laughed. And laughed. _And laughed_.

"Pakkun, if you don't shut up right now I will string you up by your ears, hang you outside the academy and let the children dress you up, and never bring you home beef ever again," Kakashi said lowly, but looking hopelessly lost, still unable to look at Takara.

The puppy shut its mouth so quickly that Takara could hear the click of his teeth.

"Hatake-san, what am I doing in your home?" Takara decided to ask, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Kakashi seemed to relax a little at the change in topic.

"You collapsed in the training grounds, I didn't know where you lived, and I really dislike hospitals, so I really didn't have a choice."

So her health wasn't worth a trip to the hospital? Wonderful.

Takara nodded slowly.

"I see. I apologize for being a nuisance."

"Apology accepted."

Pakkun nearly groaned. Could his master be any _less _charming?

Takara's silver eyes looked away from her team mate, gaze dropping to her lap. Heaviness in her chest made it harder to breath, and she felt a wave of depression. She swallowed hard, and gripped the shorts that she was wearing tightly. Pakkun seemed to see the change, and shifted uncomfortably, glaring up at his master.

_Now look what you did. _

Kakashi frowned, confused as to how this was his fault.

"I will go now. Thank you for your hospitality."

Pakkun snorted at the undeserved compliment.

Takara slowly slipped from the bed, careful not to fall over as she stood up. Once she had stood in an upright position, the wetness of her clothing became more apparent, and she remembered how soaked Kakashi's bed was.

"If you would like, I can dry your bed for you," she said quietly.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, but didn't object, so Takara took that as permission. After opening the one window in the room, she made a hand sign and bit her lip in concentration. Her dizziness was not helping with her chakra control, but she could manage.

Kakashi watched in interest as he watched the water on his bed lift into the air, the water droplets glittering and quivering prettily. Kakashi almost yelped when he felt the water of his clothing, hair, and skin beginning to pull off of him as well. Once the room was filled with tiny orbs of liquid, they began to come together, molding together to form one mass of twirling, dancing water. The long strand of water began moving forward like some kind of snake towards the window, and flew out into the open air. As Takara released the jutsu, it fell promptly to the ground.

Takara resisted the urge to grab her now throbbing head, and took a deep breath. Forcing herself to stand up straight, she began walking towards the window. However, her tough façade failed miserably when she began to cough, the coughing shaking her entire frame. Of course, that didn't help her pounding head, and when another wave of dizziness hit her, she realized that using chakra might have not been a very wise idea.

Kakashi winced as she coughed violently, and couldn't help thinking that someone so frail-looking shouldn't _wrench_ like that.

Pakkun shot him a look that screamed, _I bet you feel like an ass now, huh?_

Kakashi let out a sigh, and approached the taller girl. Gently grabbing her arm, he pulled her away from the window. He winced again when he felt how hot her skin was.

"You're sick, you know. You can't go anywhere. Besides, I'm under orders to make sure you're safe if I found you," Kakashi lied semi-airily, nudging Pakkun in the ribs when the dog smirked knowingly.

Takara looked at him, and she felt frustration bubble up in her chest at his now light-hearted tone. Why, of all people, did she have to be stuck with the person who dislikes her more than anyone else? She felt herself recoil at his touch and she looked longingly at the window. She didn't want to be here with him. Right now, she really could not take another person reminding her of what an awful excuse for a human being she was.

"I see. So this is part of your mission," Takara said, her voice holding an edge of bitterness that did not go unmissed by either Kakashi or Pakkun.

"Exactly, and it would be very nice if you cooperated," he said, crossing his arms and nodding.

Takara blinked at him as he crossed the room, opened a drawer, and extracted a pair of long pants and a navy, high-necked muscle shirt. He set them on his bed, and turned back to Takara.

"Change clothes. I'm assuming that you used up too much of your chakra during that last jutsu, and won't be able to do it again without passing out. So just wear these."

Takara only stared at him.

"After that, just walk straight down the hall and to the living room," the young Hatake instructed as he was walking out the door, Pakkun close at his heels.

He shut the door, and once outside, Pakkun gave his master a scathing look.

"Boss, you are _hopeless_."

* * *

Takara was feeling a little better. The clothing was too big on her frame, but the pants were a little short, almost looking like high waters. None-the-less, it was comfortable, warm, and dry. Well, it should have been warm, but at this point she didn't trust her sense of temperature. She was smoldering hot one moment, and bitterly cold the next. Right now, she was shaking so violently that she was having an even harder time walking.

Walking out into the living room, she didn't see anyone. Frowning, she looked around the room, which was blurring in and out of focus. She took a step forward, only to have one of her feet catch something on the floor. She knew that floor was rushing up to meet her face, but she couldn't seem to stop herself.

However, she was instead winded by an arm hooking around her stomach, keeping her from falling. She was hauled back to her feet not very gently, but then again her whole body ached, so she wasn't one to judge.

"If I didn't know Obito, I would call you the most irresponsible shinobi I've ever seen," the voice drawled uncaringly, ushering her to the couch.

Takara was going to utter thanks to her savior, but now felt more like spitting in his face. Kakashi seemed almost pleased that she was no longer speaking to him, and settled into the chair across from the couch. Pulling out a kunai, he grabbed a rag from a coffee table and began to religiously polish it, removing all of the dirt, grime, and dried blood.

It was only a few short minutes of silence until something interesting caught Takara's eye. Her silver irises brightened in curiosity.

"What is that?" she asked suddenly, pointing at the thing on the stove.

Kakashi looked at what she was pointing to, and then back at her as if she were an imbecile.

"It's a tea pot," he said slowly.

Takara tilted her head slightly.

"Is that for making tea?"

Kakashi blinked.

"Yes. . ."

Takara stared at the tea pot for a long time, scrutinizing its shape, its shine. At her feet, Pakkun grinned.

"You should make tea for your female guest," the puppy said, wagging his doggy eyebrows. Kakashi gave him a deadpan expression.

"If she wants tea, she can make it herself," he said stiffly, dark eyes fixated on his kunai as he continued to polish.

Takara guessed that this was his way of showing hospitality, but he was uncomfortable with her in his home, and was watching her every move as she made them. Wise, for a shinobi, but she fought the urge to snort at his stubbornness. Her silver eyes stared at the tea pot on the stove for a long time, and then at the box of tea, and then back at Kakashi.

"I do not know how to make tea," she admitted quietly, a curious light in her eyes.

This time, Kakashi looked up to look at her incredulously.

"You can't seriously not know how to make tea."

Takara looked at him seriously from across the couch.

"Is that very strange?"

Kakashi blinked. Was it strange? Tea was something that most everyone knew how to make. It was like an unspoken rule that everyone should know how to make tea. Most people don't even remember who taught them. It was just one of those things that you saw happen so often that it just came naturally.

"Kind of," he replied.

Takara nodded slowly, and folded her hands in her lap.

"Well then, I suppose I must learn," she said more to herself then to him, her lips slightly pursed in thought. Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

_How does she manage to be so naïve, but not?_

"Is it difficult?" she asked.

Kakashi shook his head.

"How does it taste?"

_How am I supposed to describe that?_

"Find out for yourself," he said with a grunt, turning away from her again, feeling annoyed for no reason at all.

She fell silent after that, as if she were debating her next action.

Kakashi regarded the girl carefully out of the corner of his eyes. She was still paler than she should be, flushed in the face from fever, and a little shaky, but she held herself straight and tall on the couch as if she were afraid to touch anything. She stared at him with such intensity that it was unnerving, though he got the feeling that she didn't know she was doing it. The longer his critical eye assessed her fragile state, the stranger her behavior seemed to be. It was as if she didn't even know that she was unwell. Or if she did, she was ignoring it.

Slowly, she rose to her feet, and Kakashi's muscles tensed in ready when she swayed slightly on her feet, looking as though she had to concentrate really hard to stand upright. Irritation bubbled up in his chest when she took a step that became only a clumsy shuffle of the feet.

He recalled that all of the male figures in his life had told him to be respectful and chivalrous towards women. Letting a sick girl make her own tea while under his roof somehow didn't strike him as gallant behavior.

Sighing irritably at the guilt in his chest, he put down his kunai and stood up, snatching the throw blanket from the back of his couch and unceremoniously draping it over the girl's head. Her silver eyes widened in surprise, but gripped the warm fabric when she realized just how cold she was. Shuddering, her legs wobbled.

"I'll make tea," was all he said as he waltzed to his small kitchen.

Takara watched him, and began to walk toward shim, when Kakashi's voice stopped her.

"Sit back down or I'm going to tie you to the couch."

Surprised by the harsh command, she dropped to the couch simply out of her habit of obeying orders. She frowned at him, and she could have sworn that he rolled his eyes at her.

"You're sick. I don't want sick people in my kitchen. So just lie down and be quiet."

A snort came from the dog on the floor.

"You don't even _use _the kitchen."

Kakashi shot a swift glare at his dog.

Takara didn't lie down, but stayed seated, watching the Hatake carefully as he began to make tea. Her sponge-like mind greedily absorbing the procedure. Surprising Takara, it wasn't long before a perpetually irritated looking Kakashi came back into the living room, carrying two cups. He shoved one of the cups at Takara, but didn't spill it. Takara took it hastily, and stared down at the steaming cup of brown liquid.

Kakashi settled again in his chair across from her, watching her carefully.

The girl brushed her reddish hair from her face so that it wouldn't fall into her drink, but was staring at the cup as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. Fascinated, she inhaled deeply, lips parted slightly. Though her sinuses were clogged, the aroma somehow beat its way past that and soothed her nose and throat. Already, she was certain that she would like tea.

Kakashi's eyes widened when he her lift the cup to her mouth.

"Wait. It's—"

Kakashi cringed when Takara's eye widened and a loud yelp sounded from her throat. Startled at the burning in her mouth, she jerked the cup away from her face. This resulted in half of the cup of the scalding hot liquid to pour on Pakkun's tail, who was sitting beside her on the couch. Pakkun let out a bark of pain and surprise, launching himself off of the couch and at Kakashi, who at that point had risen from his seat on the couch, cup still in hand. His dog barreled into his legs, and the tea cup in his hand went flying.

Of course, being a shinobi and all, Takara's reflexes kicked in, and without a second thought she lunged towards the porcelain cup. The cup fell smoothly into her hand, and she twisted so that she wouldn't land on it. Instead, she landed spectacularly on her side, probably fracturing her hip bone, receiving a rug burn from skidding across the carpet, and a concussion as she slammed her head on the corner of a coffee table.

Kakashi was over beside her quickly, wincing as his arms, chest, and legs smarted because of the tea burns, and helped Takara sit up. Her silver eyes were unfocused, and Kakashi could _see _the stars flying around her head. When he tried to help her up, she shoved his arm away and pushed something towards him.

Kakashi carefully took the tea cup, and set it on the coffee table. Takara was looking at him, slightly dazed, but able to more or less focus on his face.

"You. . . did not tell me. . . tea was hot," she said in between slow breaths.

Kakashi frowned.

"Is it my fault that you are the most ignorant person on the planet?"

Takara sighed, and pushed herself to a sitting position. Kakashi took the initiative and helped her to her feet, steadying her as she swayed. He began leading her to the couch

"I am not ignorant. I am simply unaccustomed to the ways of the Leaf Village," she replied.

"I'm pretty sure that most everyone across the globe knows that tea is generally _hot_ when freshly made."

"Really?"

It would have been funny if Takara hadn't been completely serious.

Kakashi sighed.

"Really."

Takara frowned at this, allowing herself to sit on the couch once more. Kakashi stood over her with his arm crossed. His navy shirt and pants were now stained with brown tea, and the visible parts of his arms were red.

"Honestly, did you live in some dark _hole_ for your entire life?"

* * *

_Her wide, brown eyes searched wildly, but could see nothing. _

_This pit, this cage, this hole, was dark. So, so dark. The kind of blackness that left strange spots in her vision as her eyes tried to absorb light that wasn't there. The kind of mind-numbing darkness that made other senses heighten to a dizzying degree, the brain reeling as it tried to understand what was happening._

_It was crowded. Very, very crowded. She could hear harsh breathing and perpetual sobbing that rang around her in some melancholy, cacophonous symphony. Wails ricocheted off of stone walls and rattled everyone's heads. Confusion, panic, and terror rippled through the crowd that was encased in darkness, and the mass of people continued to move. Shoving, tearing, clawing their way past their sisters, brothers, children, mothers, and fathers, trying to escape. Trying to get out of the darkness._

_It was cold. So, so cold. Her bare arms were numb with coldness, and she could no longer feel her feet beneath her. Not even the bodies around her provided warmth. She was numb to the panicked pushes and shoves that bruised her tiny body, but she kept moving. She had to move, because that is what everyone else was doing. It was either that, or be trampled. She had been moving for so long. Since when? Had it been hours, or days?_

_And suddenly, it was loud. Very, very loud. There were sounds of weapons being thrown, and there was that horrid, horrid hissing again. Screeches of agony and fear pierced the air. She could feel something warm, sticky, and now familiar splashing onto her cheeks. It was too warm. She felt herself screaming, but over the noises of pain and dying, she could not hear herself. There were flashes of light, and suddenly she wished for the darkness again. She did not want to see. She did not want to see anymore. There was something cold and scaly sliding past her legs, but the crowd would not let her move. But she had to move. She had to move. And suddenly something fell on her. Something large. Something slightly warmer than her and writhing. She heard it gag and wheeze, and more wet stuff spilled on her skin, and then the thing stopped moving. _

_She could not see what was on her, and she did not want to. She had to get it off. She had to get away._

_But she was tiny and weak. And there were other things running on top of her, crushing her into the floor, making her unable to breath. She opened her mouth the scream again, but the thing on top of her muffled her voice. It wouldn't have mattered anyway, because it was still loud. So she gave up, and just laid there. Wishing for nothing. No sound. No light. Just nothing._

_And then it was silent. So very silent. The thing on top of her was now cold, just like her, but she didn't try to move it. She didn't care anymore. She didn't __**want**__ to care anymore. Caring was too hard. All she wanted to do was sleep, and sleep, and sleep until she died. That way, she would never have to care anymore, and nothing would hurt. It was cold. It was crowded. It was quiet. It was lonely, she decided, but she shouldn't care so much about that._

_But it was dark. And that is what she wanted. She didn't want to believe in anything around her, and if she couldn't see it, she didn't have to believe it, right?_

_Were her eyes closed? She didn't know, but it didn't matter._

_Because it was dark anyway. _

_So, so dark._

_

* * *

_

_**"Oi."**_

Takara jumped, snapping out of her thoughts at the beckoning voice. Looking up, she saw the frowning face of Kakashi.

"Did you get a concussion when you hit your head?" Kakashi asked, leaning towards her and looking into her eyes, "Your pupils are normal," he said more to himself.

"I am fine," she said, leaning away from him before collapsed into a fit of coughing that shook her entire frame. "That is, aside from the obvious," she revised, shoving dark memories into the back of her mind. Swallowing, she forced her usual expression on her face.

Kakashi's steely eyes assessed her critically before he shrugged.

"Whatever, but don't fall asleep on my watch. If you fall into a coma, it won't be my fault."

"It is very nice to know that you are concerned with my health," she almost mumbled.

Her attempts at sarcasm might have been appreciated if she hadn't sounded so serious and the other party wasn't intent on getting her to be quiet and leave him alone.

"I bet it is," Kakashi agreed cheekily.

Glancing down at the tea stain on the floor, Kakashi decided that it was hardly noticeable and that he could wash it out later. Bleach wouldn't leave a mark on the floor, right?

"Hatake-san, do you dislike me?" Takara asked quietly.

Kakashi snapped her gaze back to Takara the unexpected question. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again, unsure of what to say.

Did he dislike her? Kakashi thought he did. But she wasn't entirely unbearable. He would prefer her company to Obito's any day. Did he like her? He didn't think so. After all, he didn't even _trust_ her, so how could he look at her as a comrade?

When Kakashi was silent for too long, Pakkun rolled his eyes, and decided to rescue his poor, clueless master.

"Don't take his jack-ass behavior personally. I'm sure that boss would have taken you to the hospital if he wasn't so afraid of needles."

A pillow was promptly hurled into Pakkun's face, effectively muffling his amused chuckle.

"I am _not_ afraid of needles."

"Is that why you fainted when Rin gave you that poison antidote?"

"I didn't faint because of the needle. I _passed out_ because of the poison," Kakashi said, obviously growing more agitated. He tried to not raise his voice, but his summon was being particularly annoying today.

Takara blinked at Kakashi, and shifted uncomfortably, rubbing her right arm.

"Hatake-san, I do not like needles either," she said matter-of-factly. Pakkun nodded approvingly.

"See? There is nothing wrong with having a fear of needles. I mean, it's not as if you aren't subjected to bigger, sharper, more lethal weapons that would make fearing a needle appear incredibly stupid every," Pakkun said with a grin.

Takara understood Kakashi's frustration at Pakkun's inability to burst into flames.

"I am _not_ afraid of needles!"

"Yes you are."

Both Kakashi and Takara almost fell out of their seats when a blond man suddenly materialized in Kakashi's living room. Takara snapped her head in his direction, regretting it immediately when the world spun.

"I mean really, Kakashi. Remember when I took you to get your vaccines last month?" Minato continued, looking at the silver-haired boy with an amused expression.

Kakashi stood up and glowered at his sensei.

"That nurse was trying to kill me," he growled.

"That nurse was trying to give you a _flu shot_."

"She shouldn't have had it so close to my neck," Kakashi retaliated stubbornly. Minato gave him a blank look.

"Kakashi, she was giving injecting it into your shoulder. The last time I checked and anatomy book, the neck is connected to the shoulders."

"I am _not_ afraid of needles."

Minato turned away from Kakashi with a wave of his hand. Ignoring Kakashi's adamant denial, his sapphire eyes looked critically at Takara.

"Are you okay, Takara?" he asked with a smile.

Takara felt warm all of a sudden, and she realized for the first time that she had really wanted to go back to Minato's house.

"No, she's not. She's caught something nasty and she drained her chakra too much," Pakkun reported, brushing past his master who was still trying to deny his fear of needles.

Minato smiled down at the little dog, patting his head affectionately.

"Thank you, Pakkun, for watching her. And thank you Kakashi for finding her," Minato said over his shoulder at his still seething student.

He grabbed Takara's shoulder, made a swift hand sign, and he and Takara were thrown into his Flying Thunder God Technique.

Pakkun decided that now, after satisfying his need to create discomfort an chaos, was the time to poof away.

Kakashi could only stand there and gape.

"What the _hell_ just happened?"

* * *

Minato scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he watched the mahogany-haired girl empty the contents of her stomach in the kitchen sink, the closest place that wasn't the floor.

"Right. I guess using that technique while you're sick wasn't one of my finer ideas."

Takara, through her retching, wished for a moment that she had settled for vomiting all over _him_ instead.

* * *

A/N: So this chapter was supposed to be waaaaaay more dark and brooding, but today I just couldn't keep it on that track, mostly because I threw Pakkun into the mix. Now, come one, with kakashi being a social noob as a kid, and with Takara being unable to be exceedingly interesting, I had to throw some humor in this. Let me know if I was jumping between 'brooding' and 'comical' to much or too quickly. Constructive critisism is always welcome!

Review!


	7. Little by Little

Disclaimer: Really, would I really be wasting my life away on fanfiction if I had such created such a successful manga/ anime like Naruto?

* * *

_**Little by Little**_

_I cannot force myself to be happy, no matter what anyones says._

_ This thing. . . This happiness is not forced, is not faked. It comes from feeling that I am. . . being loved. _

_Loved for myself._

_Or, rather, in spite of myself._

* * *

Takara sat up in bed, her throat scratchy and dry. Looking out the window, she realized that it was still night time. A growl erupted in her stomach, and she frowned at it. In the last five days, two of which she had been ill and the other three spent for recuperation, she had developed a nearly insatiable appetite. Minato told her it was because her body was becoming accustomed to being able to eat, and her metabolism was working normally again. Apparently, it was normal for a twelve-year-old to be hungry.

Silently, she concentrated very hard. There were crickets chirping outside, and she could hear the merry laughter of lovers from outside, the quiet brush of sandals on the rooftop as a shinobi leaped from building to building, but from within the house, it was silent. Without a sound, she slipped from her bed, the soles of her feet softly connecting with the wooden floors.

Her eyes glinted in the pale moonlight, and she swiftly, silently walked out of her bedroom. Looking down from the top of the stairs, her eyes quickly scanned the shadowed living room. As usual, the house looked too large, at least by shinobi standards.

The soft ticking of the clock on the wall was the only thing that could be heard as she leaped from the top of the stairs, gracefully landing in a crouch. She stood still for another moment, listening for any sound.

When she did not hear the stirring of her master, she made her way to the kitchen, and when the large, amazing, white rectangular prism came into view, she sighed.

_The thing called a refrigerator_, she thought with slight pride at remembering what it was.

The first time she had been really aware of it was when the ice machine had turned on in the freezer. The loud whirring sound that came from it had startled her so much that she had nearly blown it through the wall with a careless, very poorly executed air jutsu, but Minato had teleported her away from the area just in time for her to instead blow out the back door.

Minato had spent quite some time fixing that.

But now she had learned that the refrigerator was a wondrous place filled with food, and that her master had told her that she could have as much as she liked from it.

When she refused the offer, he ordered her to take what she wanted from it, and Takara never refused an order. That was why she was downstairs at one in the morning.

Opening the fridge (momentarily blinded by the light), she was greeted with tubs of food. Greedy silver eyes saw the beautiful platter of delicious balls that Minato had called 'dango', and she reached for them. Picking up the tray, she looked at the food in delight as she reached to uncover them.

And then a kunai whizzed past her face.

Takara whirled around, her senses suddenly on overdrive. Her eyes glowed as her vision became even clearer, so keen that it almost looked like it was daytime instead of night. A fist flying towards her face prompted her to lift the plate of dango up to guard her face. The plate of was viscously smacked out of the way. Takara ducked as another fist came towards her, diving out of the way of the oncoming body. However, she had only momentarily escaped danger, as a foot was now coming to send her into the wall. Twisting in mid air, she managed to evade the attack with a speedy back flip. She landed on the counter top in a crouch, arms in a defensive position. A flash of red crossed her vision, and suddenly Takara found herself thrown into the kitchen table, where she tumbled painfully over the chairs. Thinking quickly, she brought one of the chairs in front of her protectively and flinched at the sound of splitting wood. Takara leaped to her feet, and stood her ground, eyes narrowed as she took in the appearance of the shinobi in front of her.

She was greeted with ferociously narrowed, blue-grey eyes that told Takara she was facing a skilled, seasoned kunoichi. What startled her the most, though, was her assaulter's long, blood-red hair that licked her face like dancing flames. Moreover, her features were strikingly beautiful. Recognition flashed in Takara's eyes, and she tried to speak to the woman.

"Excuse me, I am sorry to have—" Takara didn't get to finish before she was yet again dodging the woman's blows, knowing that she wasn't physically strong enough to block them.

"What are you doing in _my _house?" the woman snarled.

"Ano, I understand that you have just returned from a difficult mission, but—" again, she was cut off as shuriken were hurled at her head. She ducked, and they imbedded themselves into the wooden cabinet behind her.

"Answer the question!" the woman spat, making a hand sign. Takara gulped, knowing that she wouldn't stand a chance against whatever jutsu this woman was about to unleash. Bracing herself, she prepared to flee for her life.

Just when the woman's chakra fluctuated violently, a yellow flash was glimpsed before the tall, slender form of Minato had the woman in a headlock, holding the other arm in a restricting manner. The fiery-haired woman began to struggle.

"Calm down, Kushina!" Minato said, wincing as his wife elbowed him in the stomach.

Recognition dawned on Kushina's features when she heard his voice, and she immediately went lax in his arms, though her muscles were still tense. Minato sighed, and moved his arms to wrap around his wife comfortingly rather than restricting.

"Welcome home," Minato said quietly with a small smile.

Kushina turned to look at him, and just as he anticipated, she wasn't smiling.

"Namikaze Minato, what is the meaning of this?" she asked in a low tone, glancing at the bewildered girl in her kitchen.

Sweat began to appear on Minato's brow as he laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

"l . . You're home early, so I really couldn't plan this out in full."

Kushina's eyes narrowed.

"Plan _what_ out in full?"

Minato was slowly backing away from his wife, trying desperately not to panic. Kushina took a step towards him for every step he took backwards, and eventually they were in the living room, out of Takara's ear shot. The mahogany-haired girl did not follow for fear of intruding on a private conversation. She had no way of knowing that her presence may make Minato's death a little less imminent.

"Well. . . there is someone I would like you to meet," he said in a tinier voice.

Kushina's eye twitched, and her posture completely shifted to the one-hand-on-hip position. Minato gulped. This was not a good sign.

"_Clearly, _seeing as there is a young girl in my house whose chakra signature is _everywhere_, indicating that she has been here for awhile." She continued in a sinisterly calm voice, "Now would you mind explaining?"

Minato swallowed, and mentally counted off all of the places that he had put one of his teleportation seals if the need arose.

"Heh heh, well," he began slowly, mentally panicking, when an idea came into his mind. An incredible, phenomenally clever idea, might he add. Kushina's eyes widened when her husband suddenly gave her a blinding grin.

"Congratulations!" He said exuberantly, wrapping his arms around his wife and pulling her into a smothering hug.

Kushina, now crushed to her husband's chest, blinked in shock at the change in mood.

"Wha-?" she stammered, before Minato continued.

"You are now the mother of a lovely girl!"

Kushina could only blink, her expression resembling that of a fish's. Minato patted his wife on the shoulder in a proud manner.

"We should celebrate such an occasion! I'll go get the sake!"

And then he was _gone, _and understanding dawned on Kushina.

Drunks fell over in the streets, babies woke in the night and began to wail, night-time lovers broke apart, and sleeping shinobi nearly had heart attacks as the screech of utter rage shook the earth. And, without a doubt, everyone in the village knew (hell, even the _devil_ probably knew by how the ground was shaking) that Minato was as good as dead, because the Red-Hot Habanero of Konoha had returned, and she was _pissed_.

"_**MINATOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" **_

Still awake and in his office, Sarutobi chuckled in amusement as the Yellow Flash of Konoha huddled, quivering, under his desk.

"You do realize that I cannot protect you if she finds you here, right?"

* * *

Takara stared at her lap. She could see every stitch in her clothing in almost agonizing detail, and yet no matter how long she counted, the time did not move any faster. The clock ticked by as slowly as ever, and only the gentle running of water and sounds of scrubbing could be heard. Takara dared to glance at the woman washing the dishes, the gentle sunlight of early morning reflecting off of her long red hair and wrapping around her in a crimson halo. Her back was turned to Takara, but the girl knew that the powerful kunoichi was carefully gauging her every movement. It was very uncomfortable.

She momentarily cursed her master for leaving her alone like this.

Takara resisted the urge to sigh, knowing that it would be too loud in the ever present silence.

"Would you like some tea?"

Takara flinched violently, the silence broken too quickly by the strong voice. She snapped her gaze up to Kushina, who had her head inclined over her shoulder to look at the girl with one blue-grey eye.

Takara hesitated, but decided that it would be best to not reject the woman's request.

She watched as the woman filled the black tea kettle and set it on top of the stove before moving backto the sink to resume the dishes.

"So what's your name?"

"Takara," Takara said quickly, making sure not to upset the woman. Her silver eyes flickered nervously from her lap to Kushina. ". . . It is a pleasure to meet you," she continued with a bow of her head.

At this, the woman began to laugh, and Takara resisted a frown. Had she not said the greeting correctly?

"Don't be so stiff! It's not like I'm going to bite you," Kushina said, and Takara was surprised by the gentleness of her voice as compared to the wild woman she had been greeted with before.

"H-Hai, mistress."

Kushina froze, and her long hair whipped through the air a she snapped her gaze to Takara, a dumbfounded expression on her face.

"_What _did you just call me?" she asked.

This time, Takara did squirm in her seat.

". . .Mistress?" Takara found the volume of her voice shrinking.

Kushina stared at her for a long moment.

"Um, I'm fairly certain that I'm not your mistress," she said slowly.

Takara blinked, and frowned in confusion.

"But are you not master's wife?"

"_**Master**_?"

Takara didn't really respond to that other than an uncomfortable glance. She was quite aware that her master did not particularly enjoy being called that, but the formality had been branded into her brain with a white-hot iron. She had actually thought about calling her master by at least his surname along with an honorific, but old habits die hard, it seemed. She knee that people found the way she addressed him strange for some reason that she could not fathom.

"What has that wimpy man drilled into you head?" Kushina asked in an annoyed voice, grumbling something that sounded suspiciously like a plan for her husband's demise under her breath.

Takara shook her head.

"It is not like that. Master spared my life not long ago and took me into his home."

Kushina's red eyebrows were furrowed as she continued to soap the plates.

"And that makes him your master?"

Takara hesitated, before nodding decidedly. It made perfect sense in her head. There was no other reason that she could comprehend for a stranger to bring her into their home.

"I see," Kushina said carefully, setting a china plate into the opposite section of the sink. Kushina reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her hair, discretely looking at her guest.

In her kitchen sat a twelve-year-old girl who behaved much more maturely than she had when she was sixteen. With a too-pallid face, small and innocent looking, with messy waves of mahogany hair hanging in it, along with such a thin frame, Kushina almost clicked her tongue in scorn. She would have to fix that immediately if the girl was going to live under her roof.

Kushina also found herself thinking that Takara had the second most beautiful pair of eyes that she had ever seen (Second only to her husband's of course, but she digresses). Sparkling like diamonds, they held such a complexity that she felt herself being drawn in. It was as if they had two layers. The outmost layer was clear, pure, and full of genuine curiosity that made her only appear naïve and childish. The second was buried beneath all of that, dark storm clouds raging behind reflecting mirrors. Demons clawed at that barrier of innocence, and Kushina's heart subconsciously went out to the young girl whom she knew nothing about.

Takara felt herself flush as a smile curved Kushina's lips, filled with warmth that was both similar and different to the way that her master smiled at her. This smile made a something fuzzy and warm spread from her toes to the crown of her head, as opposed to the explosion of happiness that came from Minato's smile.

Kushina resisted the urge to chuckle at the girl's bewildered and flushed face. She could understand what her husband found so endearing about this girl. She was quite adorable. However, Kushina sobered immediately when the realization dawned at her that the girl was unused to seeing smiles. Something unpleasant twisted in Kushina's gut when she thought of never having such a small luxury.

"Why don't you tell me a little about yourself?" Kushina suddenly asked, eager to understand the younger girl if even a little bit.

Takara blinked in surprise. She pondered the woman's words for a moment, but didn't know what to say.

"I do not know what you mean," she admitted with a tilt of her head.

Kushina grinned at the gesture. Oh yeah, her husband had always been such a sucker for cute kids.

"How about I tell you a bit about myself to give you an idea?" Kushina turned back to the sink and hummed a minute in thought, "I was born in the Whirlpool country, my favorite past-time is cooking, I really dislike hatred between people, and in the future I hope that our village will find peace," Kushina finished, glancing back at the girl.

Takara cringed at the word 'our', but listened to the woman intently. Nodding in understanding, she decided to give this a try.

"I do not know where I was born, my favorite past-time is observing things I suppose, I dislike darkness, and in the future I wish. . ." Takara frowned, suddenly staring very ardently at a fly on the wall. Kushina remained silent, feeling a sad smile on her lips. That just would not do. A child without dreams was like a shinobi without kunai. Preposterous.

"Was that satisfactory?" Takara asked slowly.

Kushina let out a chuckle.

"Yes, yes that was good." It wasn't, really. Takara didn't seem to know a lot about herself. "What about your favorite color? Favorite animal? Favorite food?" Kushina pressed gently, happy that she was getting the shy girl to do some much-needed talking about herself.

She didn't miss how Takara frowned at the questions as if she were given at a very difficult exam question.

"My favorite color. . . I think that I like the color burgundy. I once saw this creature called a tiger, and I thought that it was very beautiful. And I. . ." Suddenly, Takara looked sheepish, "I only know what ramen and dango taste like, but I think that dango is better than ramen."

Kushina felt herself flush a little bit, remembering that she had smacked the plate of dango from the girl's hands to the ground when she had attacked her earlier.

"I'm so sorry about attacking you earlier, Takara," she said quietly, "I just didn't expect there to be someone other than Minato in the house. I shouldn't have acted to brash, but my temper has always been a vice of mine," she said with an embarrassed chuckle.

"You have nothing to apologize for," Takara said quickly, flushing as well.

"It's a good thing that you're so fast. Otherwise I might have actually hit you. Then I'd have really felt guilty! If you don't mind me asking, what is your rank?" Kushina asked.

Because the war called for children to quickly become warriors, there were a larger number of advanced youth in comparison to before the war. There were jounin being promoted as young as fourteen throughout all nations, all for the sake of military strength. So, it wasn't all that uncommon for a girl of Takara's age to be chuunin or higher.

"I have no rank. Master tells me that I am not to have a rank until my position in this village is definite," Takara said, as if she were reading it from a paper.

Kushina tensed a little at the information, frowning again. She had a lot of questions about this girl for her husband when he returned.

"So you're saying that you might not be staying in Konoha?" the red-haired woman asked in confusion.

Takara opened her mouth, but didn't say anything.

She had to be realistic. Konoha was a place for her to start over, a place for her to change herself into a person that she can be proud of being. Despite her previous episode from last week, Takara had come to terms with the fact that she was going to have to figure out who she really was. Konoha would help her do so, and she knew it.

However, she also knew that she had the most rotten luck. She knew that there could possibly be a powerful, manipulative man searching for her, and whoever stood in his way may be annihilated. For her sake, that would be entirely unnecessary. In the end, she may have no _choice_ but to leave.

And that thought made Takara little sad.

Kushina didn't miss the sadness that flashed across the younger girl's silver gaze, and decided to switch topics.

"How do you feel about Konoha so far?"

Takara seemed to brighten a little bit at the question; that question she could answer just fine. Kushina listed attentively to Takara's speaking of the peculiar and endearing points about her village, and about how blue the sky was. She was tempted to laugh at how whimsically the girl viewed her beloved village.

Minato stood outside of the Kitchen, having teleported there a few minutes ago. A small smile adorned his tanned face as he listened to the exchange between his wife and Takara.

He would be lying if he said that he wasn't growing attached to the girl. It was just something that happened when you shared a living space together. It was incredibly irresponsible of him, especially under the circumstances of her living with him and the fact that she was on his chuunin squad. But he also knew that she _needed_ someone to be attached to her, to show her what it meant to be loved and to love in return.

Minato's musings ended abruptly when his wife spoke.

"Minato, do you plan on eavesdropping all day?" he caught the annoyance in Kushina's voice, but he breathed a sigh of relief at the lack of malice in her tone.

The blonde man grinned sheepishly and rounded the corner. Kushina was sitting across from Takara, a cup of tea in both of their hands and Takara was sipping hers rather comically, as if she were afraid of burning herself. Her silver eyes blinked at him, flickering nervously from Kushina to him, but overall she seemed to be calm.

"Mast-" Takara began, but was cut off by a loud cough.

Startled, Takara looked at Kushina.

"If you're going to live here, sweet heart, would you please refrain from calling Minato 'master'?" she asked gently, "People may get strange ideas if you call him that," she amended quickly when Takara began to look too confused.

"Then what shall I call him?" Takara asked.

Kushina glanced at her husband.

"Well, you can call him Minato, if you want, but maybe you'd feel more comfortable calling him Minato-sensei?"

Takara squirmed a little bit, fighting the urge to ask her master for permission, or to take permission from his wife. She didn't want to insult either of them. Minato seemed to sense the turmoil.

"You can call me Minato-sensei, Takara. The rest of your team does," he paused before adding firmly, "And you have to understand that I am_** not **_your master. No one is your master. You are free in this village to live as you want and to make whatever friends you want. No one in this village has the right to take that right away from you, not even the Hokage. Do you understand?"

Takara looked at him long and hard. All of the words spoken to her over the last week and a half, the longest ten or so days of her life, replayed over and over again in her head. Words of kindness, words of promise, words of hope. Things that she thought would never make sense, were beginning to come together.

"I do not understand completely. . . But I will try, Mas- M-Minato-sensei," Takara finally said.

Minato's lips curled into a kind smile, white teeth reflecting the light. Finally, finally, he was getting through to her!

"That's good," he said. Takara's silver eyes glanced away in chagrin, and Kushina bit back a snicker. Minato threw her a warning look before he continued. "Now we can start progressing. Tomorrow, I would like it if you could do some intensive training with the rest of the team. I have yet to see some of your skills, after all. I won't feel comfortable going on missions outside of the village if I don't have a good idea of my students' strengths and weaknesses."

Takara blinked in surprise.

"Outside of the village?" she echoed, frowning.

Minato raised an eyebrow.

"What, you think you can simply kick back your feet and not pull your weight?" he asked with a chuckle, making sure that his tone sounded joking. He knew that the thick-headed girl wouldn't be able to pick up on humor if it slapped her square across the face.

Takara looked at him, her eyes not missing for an instant how something like worry flashed across his eyes. It made her realize that he feared the same things that she did.

That she would be hunted down.

Takara took a deep breath and closed her eyes, releasing the tension in her shoulders.

"I see. I will try not to disappoint you, Mast- Minato-sensei."

Minato glanced at his wife, seeing her scrutinize his newest student with her ever-insightful blue-grey eyes. He knew that she could see right through the girl.

"I'm sure that you won't, Takara," he said with an affectionate ruffling of her hair. It didn't look much different than it had before he'd disturbed it, "From what I've seen, you have good fighting skills."

It was at that moment that Kushina noticed what Takara was wearing. Her clothing.

"Sorry for being off-topic, but don't you have clothing, Takara? I don't mind you wearing my clothes at all, but I certainly hope that my husband hasn't been so neglectful as to force you to walk around in those," she shot her husband a reproachful look, which he returned with a pleading one. She rolled her eyes.

Takara glanced down at the sweat pants that were hanging off of her hips, and shirt that engulfed her thin frame. Kushina sighed, and put her hands on her hips.

"Well, that certainly won't do, now will it? Come with me, and maybe I can find some of my old outfits from when I was your age," the red-haired woman exclaimed righteously, grabbing the brunette's hand and dragging her up the stairs.

Takara stared back at Minato with wide eyes, but the blond man only grinned apologetically. There was no way he was going to get in between his wife and dressing up a younger girl.

He wanted to live a little bit longer, thank you.

* * *

Takara looked at herself in the mirror, and suddenly she understood a little bit why Rin had been so passionate about taking her shopping. In this attire, Takara looked much more normal in comparison to the other girls. She would feel more comfortable walking through the streets if she looked more like everyone else. Of course, the clothing was a little bit large on her, but Takara preferred it to be a little loose- fitting.

She wore a short, light grey, kimono-style dress, the sleeve cutting off at the shoulder with large arm holes . After sifting through the closet, Kushina settled for a maroon obi to put around her waist, claiming that it brought the red highlights in her hair. She wore black spandex short-shorts underneath the kimono barely poking out from beneath the dress. Black boots reached her mid thigh, and Kushina added black, fingerless gloves that reached her upper arms to complete the look.

Takara turned in it, stretched in it, and was pleased to find that it was very easy to move in and would not hinder her. The material was light, but would block out some cold.

Takara felt her insides twitch in surprise when she found herself thinking that she looked, well, good in the outfit. It suited her.

She was about to turn to Kushina to give her a deep bow of thanks when she felt something in her hair. She jumped, and reached up with her hand to see what was entangled in her unruly locks. A bell-like chuckle brushed the top of her head.

"Takara, you have beautifully colored hair. You should take better care of it," Kushina almost cooed as she ran the comb through the mess of hair, patiently tangling the poor strands.

Takara blinked, and realized that her hair was being brushed. Something tingled in the bit of her stomach as a memory flitted across her vision.

She remembered peering through a civilian's window late at night while on a mission, watching a mother comb her daughter's hair as she hummed a soft tune. Takara had been fascinated with the way her gentle fingers untangled her daughter's long dark hair with her fingers, before picking up the beautifully carved comb from the vanity and unraveling the girl's glistening strands.

Oh, how she had longed for such affection.

Despite herself, Takara's silver eyes fluttered closed, relishing in the wonderful feeling of a kunoichi's calloused fingers in her hair. Something about it was relaxing to an immeasurable degree. Takara's heart leaped into her throat when Kushina began humming a little tune, untangling the strands until they fell in waves to her shoulder blades. She swallowed down the lump that had been in her throat and mentally slapped herself, struggling to maintain just a sliver of emotional detachment.

Because this sweet dream may someday turn into a nightmare.

* * *

The next day, it was rather windy, and Takara's hair blew wildly in her face. Frowning, she almost wished that it was still in its matted mess so that the strands couldn't fly so freely. Nervously, she tugged on the fingers of her gloves and the ends of her dress, hoping that she looked normal. Glancing around the streets, she noticed that she wasn't receiving as many strange glances as she had been a few days ago. Though she was still too thin, the slightly larger clothing made her appear bigger.

Minato had told her to go on ahead to the training grounds, which had earned a frown from her. How could he assume that she wouldn't try to leave the village without someone watching her? Though, she somehow got the feeling that she was always being watched. That could only be expected, though. Shrugging off the discomfort, she continued to the training grounds, moving strictly by memory. She tried not to look at any of the interesting-looking walkways and passages, because she had a feeling that her curiosity would get the best of her.

She was right.

All it took were four children running down a street towards a colorful shop. In front of that shop was a tall, strong-looking man with short, shiny black hair and tan skin, a wide grin across his face at the crowd of children around him. His smile was so bright that she could see the sun reflecting off of it from her distance. Curiosity bubbled up in Takara like boiling water, and she told herself that she would only go and look, then leave for the training grounds. That's it.

Only, such promises only worked when someone _wasn't_ confronted with a toy-store. Takara stared in fascination at the man as he demonstrated a strange device.

"Okay, Young Flowers of Konoha! Would your Youthful and Whimsical eyes like to know how it works?" the man laughed heartily as the kids giggled and whined for him to show them the toy.

"Yes, Jomei-san!" the kids chanted in almost unison.

"Hm, This Remarkable and Fanstastic device is pretty Outstanding. Even I, so Strong and Powerful, don't know if I can handle it!"

The kids looked distraught at the thought, and the man chuckled again. Takara jumped when he made contact with her curious eyes, and he gave her a wink.

"Honorable Kunoichi-san! Would you be so Brave and Valiant as to show us how this Mysterious and Wonderful toy works?" he called, drawing attention from him to the girl.

Takara's eyes widened as she tentatively walked forward. She didn't know the first thing about toys, and the doe-eyed stares of the children somehow made her feel strange.

"Wow! Are you a really strong kunoichi?" a tiny girl of about the age of five piped up, her amber eyes wide. Takara didn't get a chance to even comprehend that question before a boy with dark hair tugged on the end of her dress. He was a little older than the other kids, probably around nine.

"You don't look like a ninja. You look like my nii-san, and she complains all the time about her hair and stuff."

"Kunoichi can be pretty if they want! Tsunade-sama is pretty and she's strong!" a girl with bright orange hair said, crossing her arms at the boy. The boy scowled at her.

"I never said Kunoichi-san was _pretty_, stupid."

Hm, to be offended, or to not be offended?

"_I am not stupid_."

"_Could have fooled me."_

"Oi, oi! Kunoichi-san doesn't want to hear the Youthfully Budding Leaves of Konoha fighting. She, a Beautiful and Brilliantly Shining Rose, is being very Heroic and Self-Sacrificing by fighting in this Dreary war for the sake of all of Konoha, which she Loves and Cherishes so dearly. You all should follow her Honorable example, and protect each other like she so Admirably and Superbly protects all of you," the shop keeper scolded the children, albeit using odd words that half of them probably didn't understand. Nonetheless, the children all looked ashamed.

"Gomen, Kunoichi-san," they all chimed with their high-pitched voices. The two children that had squabbled looked especially abashed.

Takara felt queasiness in her stomach at the man's words. She wasn't protecting these children. She was putting them in danger just by being here. Swallowing back the sickness, she spoke.

"It is alright," she said quietly.

Looking satisfied, the toy maker grabbed Takara's shoulder and ushered her to stand beside him and handed her the device he was holding. It was a cube painted in all sorts of bright colors and shapes. There was a hole in the front, and on the side was a lever.

"All you need to do is to crank the handle on the side," he said quietly so that the children wouldn't hear, but being a shinobi, Takara heard it well enough.

"Now kids, the Brave and Wonderful Kunoichi-san is going to use the Glorious power her Youthful Spirit to show you how this Magnificent toy works!" he exclaimed to the eager faces in front of them. Takara caught the wink that he gave her, and she guessed that that was a signal for her.

She gently grasped the handle on the side of the box, hesitating for a moment. Her silver eyes glanced to the horde of children in front of her, and she swallowed. Slowly, carefully, as if she were going to break it, she began to crank the handle.

For a few moments, nothing happened, but then a collective gasp rang from the children as something came from the hole on the front of the box.

Takara was so startled that she stopped cranking for a moment, her breath hitching in her throat.

"Bubbles!" one of the girls squealed in delight as a dozen pairs of tiny hands reached skywards.

Takara's silvery eyes were as wide as saucers, watching in complete fascination as the shimmering spheres danced through the air. The sunlight caught them and made them glimmer with different colors of the rainbow, the wind blowing them in every direction and filling the sky with colors other than blue. Higher and higher they flew, as carefree as the wind itself, only ending when they collided with something. So beautiful and so fragile at the same time.

"Kunoichi-san, don't stop the bubbles!" a young boy cried.

Takara continued to crank the box, watching in fascination as it emitted dozens and dozens of bubbles every few seconds. The children ran around, giggling in glee as they tried to pop as many of the bubbles as possible. Adults walking by stared on in amusement, happy that despite the dreariness of war, there was still a glimmer of sunshine.

Warmth fluttered in Takara's chest, and suddenly she felt as if, even if just a little, she belonged there, standing within this mass of laughing, carefree children. It was as if she were watching the childhood that she never had.

"_What_ are you doing?"

The warmth was gone immediately, and her silver gaze snapped back to being calculative as she turned to look towards the familiar voice.

"I was aiding the people of Konoha," she said stiffly, very well aware of how bad that sounded to her own ears.

Kakashi rolled his eyes at her, arms crossed.

"That's the worst lie that I've ever heard, next to some of Obito's. Is_ this_ what you've been doing the past few days?"

Takara felt herself bristle, but didn't let the boy's prickly words upset her too much. Turning away from him, she bowed deeply to the man as she handed him the box, and he smiled wile jubilantly wishing her a Glorious and Youthful day of training.

Glancing one last time at the playing children, Takara turned to Kakashi, who was staring at her with a scrutinizing expression. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"What is it?" she asked.

"You look more like a kunoichi instead of a child playing dress up with their parent's clothing. Did your family in Hot Springs send you clothing or something?"

Takara blinked.

"Was that a compliment, or an insult?" she asked half to herself and half to Kakashi.

The silver-haired boy snorted.

"It's whatever you interpret it as. Now, do you plan on avoiding the question?" he asked bluntly.

Takara's nose wrinkled a little, feeling annoyance blossom in her chest. Kakashi thought that the expression she wore was slightly idiotic.

"Yes, I do," she replied, a hint of edginess in her voice, "I do not need to explain anything to you, _Hatake-san_."

Kakashi blinked, surprised at the way she said his name. Only a few days ago, she had used his last name simply out of politeness, and now she was using it out of pure spite. Something about her impudence made his blood simmer a little, and he grimaced beneath his mask.

"You know, I don't know how I prefer you, naïve, polite, or bitchy," he said nonchalantly, his steely eyes meeting Takara's flashing silver eyes. With a start, Kakashi realized that there weren't messy bangs hanging in them like he was already used to seeing.

"I do not care what you prefer," she replied with just as much carelessness, beginning to continue her tread to the training grounds. Kakashi caught up to her slightly longer strides with ease, and was now beside her.

The two shinobi walked through the still dewy streets, wind rustling the beautiful trees that symbolized the village. Takara was still fascinated by how, no matter how cold it was, the leaves continued to stay green. As usual, her silver eyes wandered, capturing every single little detail with perfect clarity. Close things, far away things, things concealed in darkness. Nothing was ever hidden from her.

From beside her, Kakashi watched her from his peripheral. Namely, her eyes. He felt alarm rise in his throat as he noticed something that he hadn't noticed before. Her iris constricted, expanded, different bands of silver in her eyes shifting in _opposite directions _unnaturally, reminding him of some sort of kaleidoscope. He could see how her eyes filed everything away in her mind as if it were paperwork, and it unnerved him.

"_What_ is with your eyes?" he finally asked.

He felt the slightly taller girl stiffen beside him, and her chakra fluctuated a little before settling down again. A calm look over took her features, and once again she looked so much older than she was.

"What about them?" she asked emotionlessly, staring straight ahead. Her irises no longer moved, and Kakashi almost believed that he had been seeing things.

But he didn't back down so easily.

"They moved. Not in a normal way, anyway. Is it some kind of bloodline limit?" he asked seriously.

Takara blinked for a few moments. A blood-line limit that gave you incredible eyesight? It ran a little deeper than that, and she knew it, but even she didn't know everything there was to know about her eyes.

Would it be foolish to tell someone such little-known information about herself?

No, she decided. If she was going to remain in Konoha, it was best to keep as few secrets as possible.

"It is. . . complicated," she replied, "It is not a kekkei genkai, but it is something that not many posses. I do not know much about them other than the fact that they give me the ability to see at far distances, in the dark, through more opaque objects, details that others would not be able to pick up, and completely through genjutsu."

Kakashi wasn't sure what he was more surprised about, the fact that he had actually gotten a straight answer form her, or the fact that she had such a useful ability.

"So does that mean you are immune to genjutsu?" he asked curiously.

Takara's brow furrowed.

"Not completely. Because genjutsu attacks all sense, I will be able to feel, hear, taste and smell everything else that a person without my eyes does when trapped in a genjutsu. However, I would be able to know that I was in a genjutsu because what I was seeing would not match with my other senses ," she explained.

Kakashi was silent for a long moment, absorbing the information.

"And I assume that your sensitive eyesight is why you went blind the other night. Because of bright flashes."

Takara nodded.

Kakashi thought it was a rather grim price for such abilities, but then again, that was how most things worked. Power did not usually come without a price.

"And you are completely susceptible to genjutsu when you're blind," he stated.

"That is correct. However, I can dispel genjutsu well. My chakra ideal for genjutsu, but I cannot create very believable genjutsu because the way I see the world is different from the way that others do. I am also not helpless when I am blind, Hatake-san, so please do not treat me as such if that were to happen on a mission," she told him calmly, but Kakashi could hear the warning in her words.

"Only as long as you don't become a nuisance," he said back, because she _did not_ intimidate him.

He felt, rather than saw, her silver eyes on his masked face, and suddenly alarm shot through him.

"Can you. . . Can you _see through my mask?" _he asked, uneasiness in his voice as he forced himself to not flinch away from her probing eyes and reinforce his mask with steel.

She blinked at him, took in his expression: steel eyes widened, face pale with alarm, and mouth slightly parted. Something bubbled in her chest, but she wasn't entirely sure what it was.

_Amusement_, her mind supplied helpfully.

Takara was about to open her mouth and tell him that no, she couldn't see through his mask, because it was made from material typical of ninja garb and therefore had very tightly wound fibers. She could see through semi-opaque things, but not something like that unless it was used to blindfold her.

However, the expression on his face provoked some cruel satisfaction that just felt so delicious that she didn't quite want to ruin it yet.

"I do not know," she said, trying and failing to keep her newfound amusement out of her voice.

It only increased when Kakashi's eyes went wider.

"What? How could you not know if—"

"We're going to be late, Hatake-san," Takara cut him off, walking ahead of him as carefree as a butterfly as Kakashi gaped after her.

"O-Oi!" he called, flustered and confused.

Takara paused, tilting her head back towards him.

"Are you coming?"

Kakashi shook his head, tried to pull himself together, and began to follow the brunette, who continued to walk. Takara could feel his unease and it only increased the hilarity of the situation, and she walked faster.

She had to make sure that he was ahead of him, because the gentle, upward tug of the corners of her lips was almost foreign, and yet she knew she was smiling.

It probably looked strange on her.

* * *

A/N: Phew, I hauled ass to get this chapter up! I swear, they're getting longer every time I update ^_^'. A lot happened in this chapter. Hm, if any of you can figure out who the man in front of the toy shop was, I know that I've done my job well enough! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews are helpful! Constructive criticism and compliments alike!

Ja ne!


	8. Closer

Disclaimer: I dreamt that in Kishimoto's will, the rights to Naruto would be left to me. I shot him, and he died, and Naruto became mine, and then I made Kakairu become a dominant pairing in the series and then. . . . I woke up.

* * *

**_Closer_**

_"No one can change my past, and my future is probably just as certain,_

_ but if I can just spend the rest of my existense here, _

_then I will not complain."_

* * *

Kakashi and Takara were the second two to arrive at the training grounds. Leaning against a tree and looking towards the sky as if deep in thought, Rin didn't know that the two had arrived until they were only ten feet away.

Her honey brown eyes snapped to the pair, Takara leading and Kakashi walking straight and disciplined behind her. Silver eyes locked with hers, and she looked away.

"Kakashi-kun. . . Takara-san," Rin said Kakashi's name happily and then added hers in an almost frightened manner.

Takara flinched at the honorific, but knew that she didn't deserve to be called –chan by Rin after the way she had behaved towards her. Kakashi raised an eyebrow, not missing the exchanged, but remained silent.

"I see that you've recovered from your illness," the brunette continued, refusing to look Takara in the face, her petite frame shifting uncomfortably.

Takara was quiet for a moment, blinking, not looking away from the girl for an instant. A nasty feeling crept into the back of her throat.

"Yes, I feel much better now. The medicine that you made helped my recovery tremendously. Arigotou," Takara replied in an even voice, although her heart was twisting.

Rin allowed a small smile to grace her lips, though it didn't reach her eyes, before she turned to Kakashi and gave him a wide smile. Takara looked away, then.

"How are you, Kakashi?"

Kakashi shrugged, humming an indifferent response. Rin didn't have time to look discouraged before a yellow flash alerted the three chuunin that their sensei had arrived right on time. Azure eyes scanning his team, he let out a sigh.

"Ah, Obito is late again. I wonder what his excuse will be this time?" he mused.

Rin let out a nervous chuckle while Kakashi's expression switched to annoyance at the mention of their favorite Uchiha's idiotic excuses.

Takara glanced again at Rin, and she found that the girl had been doing the same at precisely that moment. However, while Rin looked away, Takara's gaze lingered a little longer before slowly moving to another point of focus.

Which happened to be a whir of orange and black barreling straight towards her. She managed to dodge the atrocity, but only barely, and there was a sting on her cheek as she felt a zipper whip across it.

"I'm here!" cried a breathless Obito, who skidded to a halt before his team.

"Late," drawled Kakashi, crossing his arms and staring down the Uchiha scathingly.

Obito flinched violently as he turned an interesting shade of crimson. Clanching his jaw, he whirled around to point angrily at the silver-haired chuunin.

"Shut up, Kakashi! I have a perfectly good excuse!"

Minato raised a golden eyebrow.

"Which would be?"

Obito grinned up at his sensei sheepishly, scratching the back of his dark-haired head.

"A-Ano. . . So Okaa-san dropped this huge bag of apples down this hill by the Uchiha compound, and—"

"There is no hill by the Uchiha compound," Takara cut him off, furrowing her brow as she recalled her very accurate and detailed memory.

Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"He's lying, obviously," he muttered, glancing at Takara, "Really, are you always this gullible?"

Takara felt a jolt of annoyance, and shot a swift glare at the Hatake.

"Are you always this disagreeable?" she countered.

Obito snickered.

"Yes, but he's just even more of an ass-hole in the mornings!"

"You can insult me when you actually surpass my abilities, Obito," Kakashi drawled.

Obito opened his mouth, no doubt about to let out aloud, piercing screech of anger. Takara braced herself.

"Ma ma, you two. Why don't you save your energy for sparring?" Minato cut in.

The blond jounin let out a chuckle at the way four pairs of eyes lit up, excitement causing their chakra to whir.

"Alright," he said, and his team glanced at one another, "Takara and Kakashi, you're up first."

Kakashi and Takara glanced at each other, and excitement shot up both of their spines.

"What are the rules?" Kakashi asked almost immediately.

Minato grinned at the two pre-teen's excitement.

"Just try not to kill each other, okay?"

The words of a truly caring and responsible sensei.

Rin stared at her sensei, her right eye twitching. Was the man trying to make more work for her? Minato only grinned disarmingly, though he was extremely amused.

_Ah, my cute, loveable students_.

Takara and Kakashi locked eyes for a moment, and Minato watched carefully. There was no malice, nor was there burning rivalry. It was the look that two hardened shinobi gave one another when both have accepted that there was no other way out but to fight.

But, in both the steel and silver gaze, there was a glimmer of curiosity; their slightly flickering chakras were the only thing showing their anticipation.

"Kakashi, I'm sure that Takara's eyes are very beautiful, and Kakashi is certainly an attractive young man, Takara, " Minato said, azure eyes sparkling with hilarity, "But I don't really fancy standing here all day."

Kakashi turned to glare at his sensei before he walked to the center of the clearing, while Takara only stared at him in confusion before following in suite. Minato sighed inwardly, wondering why he got the emotional retards.

The two shinobi stood about thirty feet away from each other, staring each other down, the wind ruffling their hair. Kakashi's expression was hard and serious while Takara's looked curious, tilting her head as if to see him from a better angle. Her silver irises quietly began to shift and expand, allowing her to see everything to the finest detail. She could even see the faint flutter of Kakashi's pulse point in his neck beneath his mask.

"You may begin," Minato called out.

Kakashi shifted into a wider, lower stance than Takara's. She was taller than him anyway, so there was no point in making himself more equal to her height. She would naturally have a harder time keeping her balance and was so thin that he could unbalance her from sheer body mass. A lower stance would give him an advantage in this area.

However, she confused him when she barely shifted her stance at all, as if she weren't even preparing for an attack. However, her silver eyes watched him in a way that he just knew could see very ripple of his muscles, every tendon that flexed.

It was also obvious that she wasn't going to move first. She stared at him calmly, beckoningly, letting him know that he would have to attack first or else she would stand there all day, waiting.

And just as the silence became deafening, Kakashi leaped forward. Takara's body tensed slightly, and she brought her hands up in front of her, but Kakashi suddenly flew to the left, coming at her from her now unprotected side.

Takara jerked herself backwards so that his body flew in front of her, kunai swiping as if he were trying to detach her arm. Kakashi planted his feet quickly so that he could pivot just in time to meet the kunai that the brunette had been aiming at his right shoulder. The metal met with a loud clang, and Takara leapt back, acknowledging the difference in strength.

Kakashi was only a millisecond from leaping after her, when he suddenly heard the familiar sound of shuriken coming from behind him. He threw himself to the ground, rolling gracefully to the right and spinning ninety degrees so that he could keep an eye on Takara and the clone that had thrown the weapons at him.

The clone darted towards him, and Kakashi grabbed the fist aimed for his head. Quickly, he took out a kunai, and jammed it between its ribs. The silver eyes widened, before it exploded into smoke.

The smoke blinded him for but a moment, and that was all it took for Takara to make another move, hurtling herself at him with another kunai. He just barely managed to leap backwards away from her, but she was still coming for him at an alarming speed. Steely eyes widened slightly as the kunai grazed his nose, just cutting a small slit into the fabric. Any closer and she might have sliced through his nose. Quickly, the Hatake charged chakra into his palm and slammed it into Takara's left shoulder, sending her flying to her right.

Her right shoulder hit a tree hard, and she almost swore she heard it pop, but she didn't make a sound other than a pained grunt and gracefully stood up. She continued to block several more strikes before another well-aimed kick connected with her side, slamming her back again into the tree. She coughed, the taste of blood in her mouth and her ribs aching, but stood up again, back facing the tree. Kakashi jumped back and threw several shuriken towards the girl.

Takara twisted to avoid them, some of them flying completely passed her while she blocked some of them with her kunai, but didn't move from her spot.

She didn't see the need until her keen eyes caught the faint glimmer of reflected light coming from the clear wire that connected the shuriken to Kakashi's hands. Before she could move, Kakashi yanked on the strings, manipulating the shuriken so that boomeranged back around the tree and in front of Takara, effectively wrapping the string around her. Eyes widening, Takara let out a gasp as Kakashi tugged again, tightening the strings so that she was trapped against the tree. Kakashi's dark grey eyes flashed in triumph at her shocked expression.

* * *

From across the training field, Rin gasped, and Obito narrowed his eyes at the all too familiar tactic.

"Minato-sensei!" Rin said urgently, but Minato only shook his head, azure eyes glimmering with amusement.

"Don't worry, Rin."

* * *

Takara struggled, silver eyes flashing in anger, as Kakashi gripped the strands between his masked lips and brought his hands together.

Takara's eyes widened as blue electricity encased his hands.

Kakashi clapped his hands around the thin strings, and the lighting zapped through them instantly, connecting into Takara in less than a second. Takara's silver eyes widened as the pupils grew and shrunk, the electricity messing with her sensitive nervous system. Her body convulsed, her mouth parted in a silent scream as the flow of electricity continued. Finally, the electricity stopped, and the only thing that was left to tell of its existence was the strange smell of ozone in the air. Everyone watched as Takara's rigid body stood upright for but a moment longer before slumping over, unconscious.

Kakashi stood there for a moment, before he released the breath he had been holding. From across the field, her heard Obito yelling.

"Kakashi you bastard! That was too much!" the Uchiha yelled, enraged.

Kakashi frowned as he took in the lanky girl's unconscious frame. He hadn't meant to get so carried away, but he honestly hadn't expected her to be skilled enough to force him to use ninjutsu.

But, anyway, it wasn't his fault that things had excelled this far. She had been trying to injure him quite adamantly, if the deep cut on his face was any indication. All in all, it had been a good work-out for him. She would live, at any rate, so there was no reason to feel guilty.

Sighing, he began walking towards the girl in order to release her. Her disheveled mahogany hair fell into her face, and the wires cut into her skin, leaving red marks. He might have winced a little in sympathy, but that would have meant that he cared.

And he didn't.

Reaching out with a kunai, however, something odd reached his ears.

Wind, it sounded like, but that wasn't what was odd.

The wind was coming from the wrong direction.

Kakashi cursed just as he heard the splintering of wood.

He managed to dive to the side in time for Takara to slice the tree in half while simultaneously destroying her clone, still tied to the tree, and it exploded into exaggerated smoke in order to effectively hinder eyesight. Kakashi was blinded, but heard the slicing sound of her wind blade encasing her hand, and he dodged.

Takara was coming at him again, silver eyes unflinching and locking onto her prey, crackling with intensity that almost made Kakashi's throat go dry. He moved out of the way of another viscous swipe, but she twisted at the last moment and shoved him with her shoulder with her body, adding the slightest burst of chakra. Startled, he couldn't stop himself from stumbling forward.

Kakashi barely caught is balance in time to dodge the swipe of her arm, coated in wind-based chakra, the blade razor sharp and deadly. Even more deadly, was the glinting of her eyes.

Suddenly, Kakashi found himself dodging almost frantically from her accurate, dangerous swipes, jabs and kicks. She didn't miss a beat, her moving as if it were made from the wind and water, both fluidly and unpredictably.

_If one of those hits me, I'm dead,_ he thought, remembering the poor trees he had seen fall to the ground at the mercy of her attacks.

Kakashi gritted his teeth in frustration as each of Takara's strikes came too close as he furiously continued to dodge. He couldn't find an opening to attack, nor could he find an opportunity to get away. Still, her arms and legs continued to move without a fault, without relent. Her lithe body twisting, turning, flipping, and making sure to keep Kakashi dodging with all of the speed he had, clearly setting a pace that she was comfortable with but would wear her opponent down. Finally, the silver-haired boy took a slight misstep, and Takara gave a deep cut to his arm. A growl tore from Kakashi throat as he leapt backwards, but he gasped when Takara disappeared, only to reappear directly behind him, ready to slice at his back. Lucky for him, a speedy substitution saved him. But not for long, because he had only managed to move away twenty from the girl. She was on him in a second.

* * *

Minato watched with a critical eye, not missing a single breath that the students took.

"She's _fast_," Rin breathed.

Obtio clenched his fists, onyx eyes bright with anticipation as the battle continued.

* * *

Kakashi leapt upwards when Takara dropped low, her foot glowing blue with razor sharp chakra and swiped at his knee caps. Her silver eyes glimmered in satisfaction once he was in the air. In a movement too fast for Kakashi to catch, she flashed above him, and kicked him square in the chest, heel digging into his stomach.

Kakashi found himself flying towards the earth, and he managed to twist himself so that the landing was not so hard, but he would still have a nasty bruise on his entire left side. A sharp pain in his stomach and his trembling arms told him that he had to end this fight. Soon.

Takara was coming down on him fast, positioned to strike the final blow, but Kakashi rolled out of the way at the very last moment, discretely making a hand sign. Just as he felt the kunai being attempted to be thrust into his back again, he back flipped over Takara's lunging form and managed to kick her hard in the back of the head. With a sickening crack, she was sent face-first into the dirt.

Takara found that her vision suddenly went black, but the blood dripping down her neck and face brought her back to consciousness instantly, although she couldn't focus her eyes anymore. Kakashi didn't hesitate as he pinned her to the ground on her stomach, kunai to the back of her neck.

And then Takara disappeared with a pop of smoke, and Kakashi found himself straddling a log.

"She is really good at _running away_," he growled under his breath.

"I believe that it is called _tactics_, Hatake-san," a voice said from behind him as cold metal was pressed against his throat.

Takara felt his body stiffen and almost began to feel triumphant until cold metal was pressed against _her _throat as well.

"I agree," his voice said coolly.

Takara felt her heart leap into her throat when the Kakashi in front of her disappeared in a puff of smoke. It had been a clone. She blinked slowly, calmly, contemplating her choices. If she tried, and if she was lucky, she might be able to get out of the situation and continue the fight.

But she was breathing hard now, as was Kakashi. She hadn't fought like that in awhile, and she was feeling how out of shape she was. It would be foolish to continue, and she didn't want to get too worked up for fear that she would go too far. More than likely, she would end up more injured than she already was, and Kakashi's cuts were bleeding rather profusely anyway.

So, she relaxed her muscles.

Kakashi relaxed slightly as well, but he watched her warily, not wanting to assume that she had given up again.

"I admit defeat," she said evenly, despite the blade on her throat.

Only then did Kakashi drop the kunai, his blood pounding in his ears, and his breath coming out harshly. Takara's shoulders rose and fell almost dramatically, her entire frame trembling slightly.

Gingerly, she brought her pale hand up to lightly prod her bleeding head, but hissed at the contact.

"I believe that you fractured my skull," she said with a slight frown, silver eyes looking at him in a slightly accusing way. However, she was looking a little too far to the left, making Kakashi suspect that she was seeing double.

"And I think my arm is going to need stitches and you broke a rib or two of mine. We're even," he replied, noticing for the first time how much the left side of his body ached and how his arm smarted.

"That was great, Takara-chan! You really gave Kakashi-teme a run for his money," Obito said, appearing in front of the two battered shinobi, "But, the real test is to see if you can defeat me!"

Kakashi rolled his eyes while Takara frowned.

"Don't worry Obito. I'm sure that Takara wouldn't mind fighting you after her injuries are healed," Minato said, his blue eyes smiling along with his lips.

"I must say that I am impressed, though. Kakashi, you thought very quickly on your feet today and proved that you can turn a situation where you are at a disadvantage around." Kakashi straightened a little bit at the praise. Minato turned to Takara, "And Takara, you showed me that you are clever, and can make up for the fact that you are not physically strong with speed. Both of you calculate your movements efficiently."

Takara felt herself flush.

"However, Takara, you need to work on your defensive skills. You do surprisingly well with offense, given your size, but the moment the enemy finds a hole, you aren't able to defend yourself. Also, you depend far too much on close-range ninjutsu. What are you going to do if you have no chakra left to use ninjutsu? Or if you can't get close to your opponent? Finally, you're clones have a different chakra pattern than yours. That's fine, if you're facing some chuunin, but there will be no guarantee that your opponents will be. "

Takara took note of the constructive criticism, nodding her head in acknowledgement.

"Kakashi, you're defensive skills are exemplary, but you need to work on your close-hand combat and evasive tactics. You become overwhelmed if your opponent is faster than you and can't get away, so you need to develop either increased speed, or something that can protect you from a close-range user like Takara. Also, you're overconfidence blinded you to the fact that the Takara you had shocked had a different chakra pattern to the real Takara. That might have gotten you seriously injured. You need to humble yourself a little," Minato finished his critique.

Kakashi nodded in acknowledgement as well, but looked a little sheepish when Minato had basically insinuated that he was vain.

It was then that Rin had rushed to the scene, examining Kakashi's sliced arm.

"Jeez, Kakashi, and you call me clumsy," Obito just _had _to put in, before turning to Takara, "Really, it was just dumb luck that he won that fight, ne?" he asked the mahogany-haired girl.

Kakashi snorted as Takara gave Obito a hard look.

"If you're done flirting with Takara-san, Obito, then perhaps you can try coming up with some real insults?"

Obito turned a startling shade of crimson, which he fought down as he cast a nervous look at Rin.

"W-What are you spouting off about now, teme?" Obito said quickly, flustered, "I wasn't flirting with Takara-chan!"

Takara still did not understand what the word 'flirting' meant, but she felt as though she should address what Obito had said earlier.

"Uchiha-san, I do appreciate the flattery, but Hatake-san fought very well and it was his skill, not luck, that bested me," she said almost quietly, but in a matter-of-fact tone.

Kakashi blinked in surprise as Takara defended him, looking up at her tall, slender frame, which stood sturdy, square, and unshakable as she stared the Uchiha down.

Minato hummed thoughtfully from the tree that he was leaning against.

"I don't know, Takara. You're pretty close to his combat level," his azure eyes flickered to each of his students, "Who knows? One day, you might beat him."

Rin shot a glare at her sensei, who was obviously trying to rile the two boys up even more. Minato merely gave her an innocent look.

"Hah! See? The almighty Hatake Kakashi isn't so tough after all!" Obito cried jubilantly, pointing mocking finger at the silver haired boy, who was scowling to himself.

Of course, being a genius, Kakashi always had a quick remark that left the soot-haired boy to be livid, and then a head-ache inducing argument would ensue.

Sighing, Rin beckoned Takara to sit in front of her so that she could examine her head.

* * *

The rest of the sparring went uneventfully. Rin had one the sparring match between her and Obito, even though everyone knew that he had let her win. Rin had been quite upset with the young Uchiha for that, and Takara simply couldn't fathom Obito's reasoning.

"It's because I like her!" he had said with such jubilance that Takara had been plagued by it all day.

It was so idiotic, and yet Takara felt that it _should _make sense. But it didn't, and it was frustrating. Just when she thought that she was getting the hang of these new concepts, Obtio, Rin, or someone else said something that threw her for a complete loop.

Now, Takara lay on her stomach on a grassy patch of the training field. Everyone else had gone home, Minato included. She had told him that she would like to work on her chakra control, but Minato understood clearly, like he always did, that she simply wanted to be alone.

Clearly, not everyone understood such wishes, if the presence of a certain silver-haired preteen didn't make it obvious.

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Kakashi asked quietly, watching the girl as she continued to play with the puddle of water, exercising her chakra control. Which was advanced, if the water manipulation as any indication. However, the water dropped promptly back to the ground and sunk into the earth at his question.

Slowly, she brought her silver gaze up to look at him, searching his expression. Kakashi tried not to show just how much he was unnerved by it, still unsure whether or not she could see through his mask.

"I learned how to fight from my old sensei in the Hot Springs Village," she lied almost robotically, "However, water manipulation is something that I learned on my own."

"I see," he said slowly, looking at her with a critical eye, but she gave nothing away, "I bet you miss your village and your sensei."

Takara chose to ignore the dry humor creeping bitterly in her throat at the comment. Instead, she raised an eyebrow at him.

"You do not strike me as a person who bothers with pathos," she said, locking her silver eyes with his steel ones.

He shrugged, "I'm merely making an observation."

Takara's expressionless face only seemed to grow more stony.

"Then, you're observation skills are very poor," she replied, just a hint of edge to her voice as it always did when something upset her, as if she were afraid to let herself go.

Kakashi almost bristled, almost, because he liked to think that he was good at most anything, which he knew was far from the truth, but still. After the close match today, he felt much more on edge around the girl, but also more curious.

"Most people would assume that a person, especially a shinobi, would feel attached to their village of origin," he replied.

Takara had busied herself again with sucking the water from the ground, twirling it in the air with her fingers. She stared at it with complete boredom.

"Assuming will only serve to make you look like a fool, Hatake-san," she peered at him, "After all, a shinobi is only meant to fight for whom they are affiliated with. There does not need to be any sort of emotional attachment involved in order to be a good shinobi, so long as orders are followed," was her icy reply, though the coldness was directed at something beyond Kakashi's vision.

Kakashi's steely eyes narrowed.

"Are you implying that you are going to be a shinobi of Konoha, without any loyalty?"

Takara was quiet for a long moment.

"Loyalty. . . What does loyalty do? Loyalty is only a word, a shackle that is welded to a shinobi's skin as soon as he or she states their oath," Takara's look was faraway, "Loyalty does not keep anything close to you. A village can be destroyed. A comrade can abandon you. A family member can despise you. A friend can betray you. What does your loyalty amount to then? Nothing."

Kakashi felt his muscles tremble slightly beneath his skin as he felt something akin to anger and affront boil in his veins.

"Loyalty is what makes a village a village and a shinobi a shinobi. Loyalty is what created the nations. How can you say that loyalty has no value?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"Then is it not _Loyalty's_ fault that the nations are at war?" she said, the water now still as death in the air.

The wind blew, ruffling mahogany and silver hair. Takara's silver eyes did not look at him; they stared at something he could not see, something so painful that it made his gut lurch.

"What is it that we fight for, Hatake-san? What is it in this world that is worth the pain of war and death?" she whispered, her voice almost lost on the wind that wailed its forlorn song.

"The village," he answered automatically, reflexively. It was always the village. Always.

Takara looked up at him critically.

"Do you _love_ the village?" she asked, scanning her eyes over his face before she suddenly shook her head, "No, you cannot love a village. One does not love a village, except maybe its architect. You must have people in the village that you love. Tell me, Hatake-san, who do you love? Who is it that you fight for?"

Kakashi blinked in surprised at the onslaught of personal questions. He opened his mouth to reply, when he suddenly found that nothing immediately came to mind. And he knew that it should have come the moment she had asked the question.

What was he fighting for?

Takara searched his gaze for a long while, saw the hesitation, saw the sudden vulnerability, saw the _frustration_, and tilted her head in wonder.

"I see. Then, I am not the only one," she said quietly, and if he hadn't known better, Kakashi could have sworn he had heard a bit of relief in her voice. Her silver gaze looked away again.

"Hatake-san, I realize that you do not trust me. I cannot blame you, especially given this time of war," she began, looking into the distance, "But even without my eyes, I could see how much Rin-san, Sensei, and even Uchiha-san care about you. It defies all reason, why anyone would grow so attached to another knowing that they can be ripped away at any moment. You are lucky," she told him quietly, a strange sound to her voice, almost akin to wistfulness.

Kakashi felt sudden irritation grasp his insides and twist harshly.

"You speak as if you understand what it's like to be without a family," he said callously, "You have family and friends in your home village. The moment that things take a turn for the worst in Konoha, you'll abandon us here and flee back to your village while the rest of us pick up the charred remains of our brethren," he bit out, clenched fists shaking at his sides.

How dare she speak to him as if she understood? How dare she sit there and stare at him with reflective silver eyes like that like she was better than him?

Takara felt her chest constrict at his words, sudden fear taking an icy grip on her heart, and she shuddered. Where would she go, if things did take a turn for the worst in Konoha? Where would she flee?

Would she_ want_ to flee?

"Ah," she finally whispered, "So that is how you see me. A coward," she said calmly, more to herself than to anyone else.

The silver-haired tween blinked in surprise, not expecting her to derive such a message from his words.

"You believe that I would abandon you all, should Konoha begin to lose this war," The girl stated, looking down so that her hair fell back into her eyes, "Hatake-san, please believe me when I say that there is no longer a place that I would rather be than in Konoha, no matter where my previous ties were."

Takara looked upwards towards the crystal blue sky as a flock of birds flew over head, the sunlight glistening off of their sleek feathers.

"I will not hesitate to fight and die for this village. I promise you that."

A calm breeze lightly ruffled silver and mahogany hair, the soft whisper now the only things that broke the deafening silence. Suddenly, Takara fixed him with a gaze filled with something like amusement.

"Is that really so surprising?" she asked.

Kakashi opened his mouth before clamping it shut again beneath his mask. Confusion swam in his two dark eyes, not missed by Takara, but she didn't say anything more as she continued to look out over the hills.

The young Hatake stood silently for a long time.

"Who are you, really?" he finally asked, quietly.

They both knew that the question was far deeper than it sounded.

There was another round of silence as Takara thought about that. Finally, her shoulders sagged, and suddenly she looked very tired, and much, much too old. At that moment, Kakashi wondered how she was able to look so much like a child one moment and then an adult the next.

"I do not know yet."_._

Closing her eyes, she felt the coming chakra before she actually saw the person, and it was obvious that Kakashi was also unsurprised when the soft thump of feet on grass came from behind them.

"Minato-sensei told me to tell you that we have a mission," came Rin's tentative voice, as if she were afraid to break the tension between Takara and Kakashi.

Her brown eyes cast anxious glances between the two, desperately assessing the situation. Catching Rin's eye, Takara saw an emotion there that did not seem to suit the brunette. Rin stared at her for a long moment, before swallowing and putting on a painfully fake smile. Kakashi didn't seem to notice, thankful that the painful conversation was over.

"What rank?"

"B." Rin replied, refusing to look at Takara, "Minato will be delivering a scroll to a Kumo diplomat. We will be responsible for retrieving a Konoha ambassador from the Hot Springs Village."

Takara kept her face carefully impassive, but her heart jolted quickly in her chest.

Hot Springs Country was very close to Sound.

"When are we to leave?" the silver-haired man asked with a sidelong glance at Takara, who seemed too emotionless for someone who was about to visit their home village.

Rin didn't miss the look, and she swallowed hard.

"As soon as possible. Minato-sensei said that we should leave first thing tomorrow morning," she replied.

Kakashi's eyebrows rose. The scroll must have been urgent, for them to be leaving at such short notice.

"Understood. Arigotou, Rin," he said quickly, drawing himself up and turning towards the village.

Rin gave him a sweet smile and nodded.

"Well, I've got to go get my pack," she said airily.

Hesitating, she glanced at Takara, who had also risen to her feet. Honey brown locked with silver, confusion in both of their eyes. Without another word, the chuunin brunette turned on her heel, and began leaping back towards the village.

Takara stared at the spot where Rin once was, now deep in thought. She wasn't aware of the intensity of Kakashi's dark stare, as if trying to find answers to his many, many questions.

Finally, realizing that he would accomplish nothing by standing there, he turned and began to walk away, but something nagging in the back of his mind caused him to stop. Takara noticed his lack of movement, and looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"You. . . They also care about you too . . . Minato, Rin and Obito, I mean. . . . They care a lot."

Takara's silver eyes widened and Kakashi heard her breath still.

"Just don't make them regret it," were the last words that rushed from his masked slips before he disappeared, leaving Takara suddenly alone on the hill.

His words swam in her head. The absurdity of them would have caused her to laugh in sheer disbelief only two weeks ago, but now, all she felt was sadness and fear.

Because she was starting to care for them as well. Even Kakashi, as much as she didn't want to admit it.

"They should not care. . . Because they will regret ever meeting me," she whispered to herself, fingers curling into a fist.

Suddenly, the back of her head began to itch, and she whirled around to see what was causing her sixth sense to tingle. Looking back at her, were nine pairs of eyes. Strikingly black, beady eyes that seemed to stare straight through her.

Nine pairs of black wings fluttered, and her stomach sank as the nine crows cawed wretchedly before taking off as if they had been startled.*

What was left was silence, as those black wings beat the sky, the light reflecting off of their black feathers as crimson as blood.

Takara stood there, her heart now a cold stone in her chest as the premonition chilled the air. She gritted her teeth and turned her silver eyes away from the peaceful village as her throat clenched. The question she spoke aloud came out strangled and shaky.

"How long do I have left?"

* * *

A/N: I am soooooooooooooo sorry that this took so long. For the past two weeks, I have been staying after school until 9:30 in order to prepare for our spring musical. But now that it is over, now I will be able to write again! I don't really like this chapter. It feels rushed to me, and the ending did not turn out how I wanted it to AT ALL. Oh well, I hope you all like it!

*In Japan, the number nine is a very ominous number, often associated with suffering. Crows are often a negative omen as well, usually thought as a warning of an ill future.


	9. A Hand to Hold

Disclaimer: Naruto? Yeah, um,** not mine**.

* * *

_**A Hand to Hold**_

_"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand." _

_~Mother Teresa_

* * *

Bright blue eyes snapped open, a sudden spike of energy disturbing his deep, peaceful sleep. His shirtless torso shot straight up, senses suddenly on high alert as his eyes scanned the dark room. Glancing to his left, he caught the gaze of his wife, who was lying perfectly still and searching for the source of the sinister chakra. He wouldn't have been surprised if she had been long-aware of the chakra before he had. She was extremely sensitive to such things, what with her own unique chakra.

They waited for a few moments with tense muscles before another, stronger pulse of chakra blasted his own chakra points, disrupting the energy's natural flow. He brushed messy blond hair from his eyes as he began to move, preparing to take down the intruder in his home. Whatever this person was after, he was not going to allow them to harm his wife or the sleeping girl upstairs.

Slender fingers wrapped around his arm and he froze, looking down at his wife, who was looking up at him through a veil of fiery locks. Her red eyebrows furrowed, blue-grey eyes flashing with concern.

Her fingers flashed through a series of signs, and the elite part of his well-trained mind translated the ANBU sign language as if it were second nature.

_It's not an enemy. _

He blinked once before another pulse of chakra rattled him, and he felt a slight nausea from the oppressiveness of the atmosphere. His wife fluidly sat up, flinging her long, braided hair over her shoulder before swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

He looked up at her with questioning eyes, and she put a finger to her lips, motioning for him to follow her as she stood. The seriousness in her eyes kept him from arguing.

Silently, the two shinobi padded up the stairs and stood outside of a single door. Another shockwave of chakra caused the blond man to flinch slightly, eyes narrowed. Glancing to his wife, he saw that her eyes were dark with anxiety. She reached for the doorknob and opened the door.

The blast of unrepressed chakra hit the two of them so hard that the blond grabbed his wife and almost transported away, but he found himself barely able to focus his chakra as the sinister energy tried to wound its way through his system.

After a soft touch on his shoulder, the suffocating feeling was suddenly gone and he looked over to see his wife's mouth moving in a silent chant of seals, her chakra swirling like a smooth whirlpool and dispelling the unwelcome chakra from both him and her. Once again, he was stricken by the power of her unique abilities, but he didn't have time to gawk as a strange sound reached his ears.

It sounded somewhere between a shriek of terror and a choked sob, and with a start he realized just who was making that sound. He felt a stab of panic and teleported himself into the room despite his wife's grabbing hand. He nearly choked when he appeared in the room's center; it was as if the atmospheric pressure increased ten-fold and the temperature dropped to arctic levels.

Another blood-chilling cry, this time louder and edged with hysteria, brought goose bumps to his skin.

"Takara?" he said out loud in alarm, forcing the coldness from his limbs and flashing by the girl's side.

Her deathly pale form shook violently as it contorted and thrashed, skin glimmering with cold sweat. Mahogany hair was dark with dampness and stuck to her neck and face, bedraggled and matted. Her mouth was wide open with both silent and audible screams as the muscles in her face twisted grotesquely. The pale moonlight streaming through the window revealed bright crimson streams across her nose and cheeks. Blunt nails dug into the flesh of her eyelids as she clawed at them, as if attempting to wrench her eyeballs from their sockets.

"Takara!" he said again, arms flashing out to grab her wrists and pry her hands away so they couldn't do more damage to her face.

Just outside the doorway, Kushina's eyes widened when she saw the built-up ball of energy surrounding the young girl.

"Minato, wait! Don't touch—"

Takara's eyes snapped open, but instead of her reflective silver eyes, there were depthless black pools of desolation, grief, and terror. Her hand lashed out, and it was all Minato could do to cover his face with his arms to shield himself, though he was pushed back several feet. He felt blood dribble down a cut on his forehead and a sting on his arm but paid no mind to them. The sound of breaking glass told Minato that the blast of dark, heavy chakra had shattered the window.

Takara's eyes were still wide and blind to anything other than whatever terrors those black orbs were seeing. She was thrashing so violently that Minato and Kushina were both afraid that she would hurt herself or destroy the house. Another screech ripped from her throat and her hands were back over her eyes, but now that they were open, there was no protecting them. Kushina sprang to her feet and flashed to Takara's bed, motioning for her husband to stay away.

"Takara-chan," Kushina said softly, though a little tense, "You need to wake up now."

Another blast of chakra along with a distressed keen nearly shoved Kushina backwards, but she bore it with a grunt, wincing as her skin was slightly burned.

Kushina bit her lip as she quickly tried to find where the excess chakra was coming from. She carefully reached out with her own chakra, not daring to physically touch the young girl until she knew what she was dealing with. Takara's body tried to reject the foreign chakra violently, wrenching painfully as the girl released a tormented cry. However, Kushina persisted with her searching, even as Takara's dangerous energy left a cut on her left cheek. Her deep blue chakra and the dark, purple-black chakra of Takara's twisted around each other, fighting for dominance. More than once, Kushina felt like she was losing the battle.

_There_, Kushina thought with both surprise and relief when she felt a sharp jab to her chakra core as her chakra swept over a point in Takara's chakra system. It was both astonishing and expected that the source of the horribly oppressive chakra was pinpointed in each of her eyes.

The abysmal black eyes continued to swirl with terrors beyond comprehension, blood leaking from behind the sockets like agonized tears of a tortured soul.

Kushina flinched when they swiveled slightly to their left, boring holes into the red-haired woman's face.

_Help me_, they seemed to scream at her, _Please help me._

Kushina suddenly realized what she was seeing.

It was in Takara's eyes whenever she looked into them, trapped behind her silver irises and desperate to break free. Kushina had _seen it _there whenever Takara let her guard down, whenever the young girl became so tired of pretending to be strong and just, for one moment, wanted to be a child. She had _known_ that it was there since the day she attacked that scraggly girl in her kitchen, hidden behind the most reflective shields, and Kushina had ignored it. An angry, guilty flame flared up in Kushina's chest as she stared into those onyx orbs, _begging_ her to end the suffering.

_Please, please help me._

Kushina bit her lips so hard that she could taste blood, not tearing her blue-grey eyes away from Takara's for a moment.

_I will._

Steeling herself against the violent chakra flowing from the young girl, Kushina performed numerous hand signs at a near blinding speed, promising an intense expense of chakra. But, the Uzumaki-born woman spared no thought to such matters, and stuck her arms straight out, crossing her hands in an X formation. She lined up her hands with Takara's eyes, but kept a distance and concentrated her chakra. Her hands began to glow and eerie blue, tendrils of energy emerging from her hands. They stretched and twisted, feeling and pushing against the negativity in the air.

"Restrain."

At Kushina's command, the tentacle-like structures sprang forward from her hand, smashing against the orb of chakra surrounding Takara.

It cut through the dark chakra like a knife, and in response the chakra began to spin wildly as if it were a living creature itself, unable to understand why it was being attacked. Pushing past the frenzy of energy, Kushina's chakra darted straight for the source and quickly met its mark.

Takara let out a screech of agony as Kushina forced her chakra into those black eyes, but felt their stomachs twist at the sound. Chakra pulses were shot everywhere in a mad attempt to make the pain stop, and Minato just _knew_ that he would soon have his house surrounded by ANBU in mere minutes, the power of them was so disconcerting.

Takara arched up off the bed; it was a miracle that she hadn't taken out a wall yet with her chakra-boosted flailing. Her hands were making to grab at her eyes, but the force of Kushina's chakra kept them away so that Takara's hands could only curl into the skin of her cheeks, leaving painful looking red marks.

Minato could only watch worriedly, but he knew that it was best that he stood back and allowed his wife to perform her fūinjutsu. He watched his wife's chakra strategically herd Takara's chakra so it was forced into a compact ball, growing smaller and smaller and more repressed as it was forced back into Takara's own chakra system. The girl writhed in pain, letting out blood-curdling shrieks that he was sure would wake the neighbors and any shinobi nearby. Sweat began to bead on Kushina's forehead, but the concentration on her face gave nothing away of her fatigue.

The ball of black chakra was no more the size of a basketball now, swirling angrily within the confining net of Kushina's chakra.

The blond jounin could feel the back-breaking tension leave his shoulders as Takara's cries quieted into hoarse raps, her jerking weakening into small spasms. The stiffness to Kushina's shoulders also relented, though they didn't completely relax until the ball of chakra had shrunk to the size of a marble and disappeared into Takara's eyes.

It was only then that Minato approached his heavily-breathing wife, watching her carefully. Turning to look at him, she flashed him a weary smile that didn't quite cover the worry in her eyes.

A gasp from beneath the two shinobi brought their gazes back to Takara.

The girl was so pale that she matched the white sheets on the bed and made the blood on her face stand out sickeningly. Her drenched clothing stuck to her skin and her matted dark hair clung to her face and neck. Her lanky frame shook so violently that the bed nearly vibrated. She lifted her silver eyes to the two people standing over her bed. Red-rimmed and bloodshot, they were so wide that they made her look slightly deranged, lined with deep purple circles that made them look deeply sunk into her head like a corpse's.

The two shinobi watched her carefully as she lifted up one shaking hand. Another small gasp left Takara's lips when she saw that her hands were stained red, blood crusted under her fingernails and still dripping down the terrain of her long fingers like tiny rivers.

Her eyes widened impossibly further as she saw the deep cut on Kushina's cheek and the profusely bleeding one above Minato's left eyebrow and right arm . Her pale lips open and closed as she looked from her guardians to her bloodied hand, small pieces forming together in her brain to create a horrifying picture.

Minato and Kushina saw the change in Takara's expression, going from shock and confusion to sheer horror and trepidation.

"I-I am sorry. . . I. . . I did not mean. . ." Takara began muttering, all the while looking from her hand to the blood on her caretakers' faces.

Kushina's red brow furrowed in confusion, alarmed by the girl's behavior. It was understandable that she be shaken after such an ordeal, but she was acting more like an ANBU operative who had just come out of a mission haze without having any idea where they are.

"Takara, sweet heart, what's wrong?" she asked gently, making sure that her voice was as calm and soothing.

The young girl shook her head as if in disbelief as she scrambled backwards on the bed, staring at her guardians as if they were the most frightening things in the world.

"I-I did not know. . . I. . . S-Sorry," she whimpered.

Minato's azure eyes were worried as he tried to figure out exactly why his charge was so frightened. Carefully, he followed her line of site to his wife's face. Minato's eyes widened in realization.

"Kushina," he said in a quiet voice so not to alarm the terrified girl. She looked at him questioningly as he motioned to his left cheek. Mirroring him, she brushed her fingertips against her cheek and blinked when she felt a familiar, warm wetness on her fingers. A flash of crimson confirmed her suspicion.

"You too," she whispered, brushing the area above her left eyebrow. Her husband frowned and confirmed his injury.

"I. . . I-I am sorry. . . I. . ." the girl began to babble, huge silver eyes filled with sorrow, fear, and guilt as she glanced again at her bloody hand.

Kushina felt her heart clench at the sight.

"Oh. . . Oh no, sweet heart, are you worried about this?" she brushed her fingers against her cheek, "It doesn't hurt at all, just a scratch!" she told the girl softly, staring into her eyes.

A shuddering breath came from the girl, the kind of sound a small child makes when they're holding back tears.

"I. . .I. . ." Takara whispered in dismay.

Minato, sadness in his eyes, stepped towards the quaking girl. Her gaze snapped to him.

"Takara-chan, you didn't mean to. We both know you didn't," he said in his kind, honey-toned voice.

Takara quieted, looking from Kushina to Minato as if she didn't believe them.

Kushina moved to the edge of the bed, smiling at Takara in a way that made her trembling become less prominent.

"We aren't mad. Come here, sweet heart," she said, opening her arms.

Takara froze completely for a moment, her heart pounding in her ears as she stared at the fiery-haired woman. Then, with all the speed her thin frame possessed, she launched herself at Kushina and barreled into her chest. Kushina was only slightly winded, but she let out a breathless laugh as Takara grasped the fabric of Kushina's night gown so tightly that her pale knuckles were stark white and the tendons in her wrist strained. Her hold was so desperate that Kushina wondered if the young girl thought that something was trying to tear her away.

The Uzumaki didn't care at all that her white night gown was becoming stained by the wounds on Takara's face. So long as the girl was safe, she didn't care.

Minato watched as is wife wrapped her arms around the awkward ball of shaking limbs against her chest, her face soft with all of the love and tender care of a mother comforting a frightened child. He watched as Takara's thin shoulders shook with something other than her previous fear, and Minato could have sworn that he heard tiny sobs escaping Takara's throat.

But he couldn't be sure.

"Shhh, it's alright now. You're safe. No one is going to hurt you here. Shhhh."

A warmth wormed its way into Minato's heart as he listened to his wife's gentle murmuring, unable to banish the thought of how much they looked like a family right then from his mind. Sure, maybe the Yellow Flash of Konoha, the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero, and a girl shrouded in mystery didn't make for the most normal family in the world, but that didn't matter to him in the least.

Minato only tore his eyes away from the scene when he heard a sharp rap on the unshattered window in the room. The blond jounin looked up to see a white-porcelain face of a boar staring at him though the window.

The Namikaze didn't need to see the man's expression to know what he was asking. Minato shook his head at the ANBU, wordlessly telling him that there was no need for interference. The ANBU nodded, though Minato could feel the apprehension in the ANBU's posture as he turned his white face to look at the scene.

Minato watched as the ANBU's shoulders heaved as if with an exasperated sigh, before turning to look back at the other male.

Minato and Inokira shared one long, meaningful look before the Yamanaka disappeared into the night.

* * *

The cool, morning fog was thick enough that it would have hindered sight. That is, if you weren't Takara, anyway. However, the tall girl was walking silently beside her sensei, her eyes lowered and allowing her other senses to guide her.

The damp spray of water caressed the stinging cuts on her face, and dampened her hair, which was pulled up in a ponytail today so that it didn't irritate her injuries. It felt strange, her center of balance changing slightly though her body felt a little lighter.

She didn't dare look at her sensei, who walked silently beside her. Through her peripheral, she could see the small bandage peeking from underneath his forehead protector, an ever-present reminder of the night before. A shiver went down her spine.

She stared at the ground in front f her, a horrible, sickening sense of dread and guilt making it hard to breathe.

No one had mentioned what had happened the previous night. Takara had woken after a few hours of dreamless sleep tucked into clean sheets and wiped clean of blood. She did not remember everything that had happened during the night, all she remembered was perpetual darkness, despair, and terror.

Kushina had greeted her in the kitchen with a smile bright enough to put the sun to shame, and Minato smiled at her form the kitchen table, eating a healthful breakfast prepared by his wife. It was not unlike any other morning in the household, but Takara could detect the subtle, but present, tension in the air. Delicately, Minato had told her that if she felt too tired to complete the mission today, that he would understand and she could remain in the village.

"No. I cannot."

"Takara-chan, it's really alright if—"

"Forgive my interruption, Minato-sensei, but please allow me to come along on this mission."

Minato had studied her with his piercing eyes.

"You know where we are going."

"Yes. . ."

"Are you afraid?"

Takara had been silent for a few moments, weighing her emotions carefully.

". . . Is that wrong?"

Kushina had paused in scrubbing the dishes, listening silently, and Takara had pretended not to notice. Minato had shaken his head slowly, and gave her a soft smile.

"No. Everyone is afraid sometimes."

Takara's hands had clenched in her lap, her silver eyes looking down at them as she wondered just how white her knuckles could turn.

"I think that I am always afraid of mast-. . . of him," she had admitted quietly.

At that point, it had been blatantly obvious that Kushina was listening, her blue-grey eyes narrowed as she stared almost angrily out the window above the sink.

"But I want to be there in case. . . in case he does come."

Minato had given her a long, hard stare.

"What do you plan to do if you do if he does?"

The clang of dishes being dropped in the sink had announced that Kushina was fed up with eavesdropping, and was going to put her two-cents in.

"She's going to run, just like the rest of the team," Kushina had growled, turning to stare at her husband and charge.

"And if they can't run?" Minato had asked his wife quietly.

The fiery haired woman had put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at her husband.

"Then you better be there to save them," she had shot back.

"And I will try my hardest to be. You know that. But that may not be the reality."

Takara had frowned, and raised her head. The two adults quieted their near-argument and watched the determined gleamed in the young girl's eyes.

"I will fight. If he does come, it will not be necessary for anyone to interfere except for me."

Kushina's eyes had softened.

"Takara, you don't have to shoulder the burden all on your own," she had said, putting a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"And if my team learned anything from me, they wouldn't leave a team mate behind." (A/N: remember that during Kakashi Gaiden, Minato)

But Takara clenched her teeth and shook her head.

"No one needs to get injured because of me."

The glance that Takara had cast at the cuts on Kushina's and Minato's faces didn't go unnoticed.

"Takara-"

"Please, Minato-sensei. . . I . . . I-I wish to. . . be with you all."

Kushina had felt a grin cross her face as Minato's blue eyes blinked at the girl's pleading expression. Really, her husband was a sucker for cute kids.

Takara snapped out of her thoughts when she saw the large gates of the village appear through the thick wisps of fog. A shiver shot down her spine as she let her gaze pierce through the fog and to the forest beyond. She hadn't been outside of the gates since she'd been brought to Konoha, and she wondered what it would feel like to step beyond them now, after all she'd learned.

Would the world outside be as cold as she remembered it?

Takara swallowed harder than usual, and peered more intently through the mist, calmed by the way the entire world almost shimmered with its clearness, all of the colors becoming sharper and deeper. There were even a few colors that she had no name for, for no one but her could see them at all, and she had no desire to call them anything. Tiny dust particles in the air glowed silver with reflected light, becoming vey distracting, so Takara toned down her eyesight until the tiny shining lights became more bearable.

Out of the corner of his eye, Minato watched Takara control the hundreds of lens -like structures in her eyes, tuning them to her liking as if they were some kind of extremely advanced and powerful camera. Tantalizing and even beautiful to watch, Minato wondered not for the first time the entirety of their abilities. From what the Yamanakas gathered coupled with Tsunade-sama's medical examination upon her arrival, Takara's eyes were extremely complex, in some ways resembling the Byakuugan, but also the Sharingan in other ways. However, they seemed to have very different abilities.

And then there was the incident last night. . .

"Hatake-san is already here."

Blinking, Minato squinted through the mist, and was able to catch a glimpse of navy, with silver locks probably blending into the fog.

"As early as ever," Minato muttered with an amused roll of his blue eyes, "Sometimes, I don't think he sleeps at all," he said with amusement.

"Hatake-san seems. . . very caustic," Takara said quietly, her reddish eyebrows furrowing slightly, "Hatake-san is capable of having so many friends, but pushes everyone away. I feel as if he is wasting something. . . good."

Minato blinked a few times, not expecting the girl to say anything that expressed her opinion. He tried not to show his excitement at the very large step in her development. Looking to the sky, he hummed low in his throat while he thought.

"Kakashi does it unconsciously, I think. He is talented like you, but was exposed to shinobi life far too early. He never properly learned how to interact with people. You and him are similar, but you handle your insecurities in different ways. . . You, at least, try. I don't think he does at all."

Takara was silent for a moment, simply staring ahead. She was very aware that she communicated very poorly. She had extremely little experience in dealing with people. She was ignorant, awkward, unconfident in her humanity, and in no way a good person.

Kakashi on the other hand, was charismatic, respected, and had spent his entire life serving his village. He was liked by nearly everyone in the village. So, why did he take it all for granted?

To Kakashi's credit, when he saw Takara's mangled face, he only sucked in a sharp intake of breath. The only reason Takara knew that was because she could see the slight movement of his loose shirt.

"Good morning, Hatake-san," she said out of politeness, nodding her head.

Kakashi dipped his head in greeting, though his dark grey eyes assessed the red gashes across her cheeks and eyes. Through his mask, he could still smell the blood. But, he didn't ask, and for that, Takara was grateful.

Predictably, the next person to show up was Rin, who was smiling as brightly as ever. Her brown eyes shone when she looked at Kakashi, greeting him in her bright and cheery voice. Takara turned her face away so she wouldn't see her wounds, but some sort of siren in Rin's medical mind went off. Takara could feel the medic's eyes burning into the back of her head.

"Takara-san. . . Are you injured?" Rin asked.

Takara stiffened a little, but turned her head back to look at the girl. Rin let out a gasp, and rushed forward.

"Oh my. . . What happened?" she asked , forcing herself to not touch the injured girl for fear of startling her.

"A dog scratched her," Minato supplied easily, though he earned questioning looks from both Kakashi and Rin. "It was a very aggressive dog, and Takara didn't want to hurt it, so it did some damage before she could restrain it."

Kakashi nearly rolled his eyes at the lie while Rin raised one eyebrow.

"Well, none the less, it won't do to leave them alone. They could get infected," Rin chastised in a typical Rin mother-hen tone, but then she looked sheepish, "That is if Takara-san doesn't mind. . ." she said quietly.

Takara's silver eyes lowered, and she shifted uncomfortably.

"I. . . do not mind at all, but. . . Would you be opposed to doing it over there?" she asked, pointing to a spot about thirty feet away, "I would like to speak to you for a moment," she continued, sounding hesitant. "That is if you do not mind. . ."

Rin blinked for a moment, bewildered, and nodded mutely before following Takara to the small area under the trees.

Minato quickly engaged his silver-haired student in a conversation as Takara and Rin settled on the ground so they could converse without the intruding eyes of an outsider. Quickly, Rin got to work on healing the stinging cuts. Several minutes passed before Takara dared to say anything. Taking a deep breath, she decided that she should just get it out, like ripping the metaphorical kunai out of the wound rather than remove it slowly.

"Rin-san. . . I. . . I would like to apolo-"

"**_I'M HERE!_"**

As the shadow fell upon the two girls, all of Takara's fight or flight instincts roared to life, very touchy after the incidents that had occurred the night before.

Her shinobi mind concluded one thing: Ambush.

Takara shoved Rin away from the danger and sprang at the descending figure, teeth bared and eyes narrowed. She lashed out with her leg in a spiral kick, watching as the figure hit the dirt with a loud thud. It bounced impressively across the ground and skidded several more feet before it stopped. Takara landed neatly in a crouch, wiry muscles tensed and ready to fight. Reaching for a kunai, she prepared to throw it, right between their assailant's eyes. It would be clean, quick, precise. Hardly any blood at all.

"I would say that you're late," Kakashi's voice drawled, slicing through the predatory haze that had muddled Takara's mind, "But it wouldn't have the same affect after Takara-san's display."

With a sharp intake of breath, Takara rose to her feet, body rigid as she glanced to her right. Minato was staring at her intently with worry. Rin, from the ground, looked up at the mahogany-haired girl in shock. Kakashi only looked at her out of the corner of his eye as if trying to read her.

A low groan brought her gaze back to the person whom she had just attacked and her silver eyes widened as she took in the heap of orange and black as it rose unsteadily to its feet.

"Uchiha-san?" she asked, walking hesitantly over to the young Uchiha swaying unsteadily on his feet.

Onyx eyes blinked owlishly, staring into spafce.

"Oh look. . . Stars. . . Ow," Obito breathed, holding his head in his hands as he fell back on his backside.

"Looks like she did some damage," came Kakashi's voice again, his tone so uncaring that Takara wondered why he was so popular.

"I. . . I did not mean to hit him so hard," she muttered nervously, scratching her right arm self-consciously, "Really, I did not. I had thought that he was an attacker and-"

Minato shook his head as he walked over and placed a hand on her head.

"It's alright, Takara. He'll know you didn't mean it," her blond caretaker chuckled.

"The idiot deserved it," Kakashi added, though he didn't sound like he was comforting Takara at all.

Obito wasn't so out of it that that he didn't pick up the insults that Kakashi threw at him, apparently. Drunkenly, he threw his finger in Kakashi's general direction, though it looked like he was glaring at the tree several feet away from the group.

"You bastard," he slurred, "Why don't you come over here and say that to my-" was as far as he got before he fell over onto his side, out cold.

Takara glanced at Rin as the brunette groaned. Nudging Takara out of the way, she stomped over to the unconscious Uchiha.

"I swear, all of you just like to make work for me. I'd actually like to have some chakra before the mission starts! Jeez, the next injury better be fatal, or you all can kiss my-"

It was going to be a long mission.

* * *

"All right," Minato began as they came to a fork in their paths, "This is where we split up. As you four know, I will be traveling to Kumo while you three will be traveling to Hot Springs. Kakashi will be team captain."

Takara nearly raised her eyebrow as she saw Kakashi's chest puff up slightly, but decided not to comment.

"We all will have four days each to complete the missions. We will rendezvous here at this hour in four days time. Any longer, and we can assume that something has gone wrong," Minato continued, speaking swiftly and business-like.

His tone seemed to flip a switch in Takara's brain, and she straightened up, her mind immediately narrowing only to things pertaining to the mission.

Kakashi saw the change, watching Takara closely out of the corner of his eye. Her slender form was attentive and emanated mission experience, the training to follow orders drilled so forcefully into her brain that she looked like a full-fledged kunoichi instead of the awkward, lanky teen that he was teamed up with.

For a moment, he felt like she was the leader rather than him.

Quickly, Kakashi banished those thoughts and also drew himself up, trying to get himself into the mindset of 'leader'.

Minato grinned at him encouragingly, and Kakashi suddenly felt like a child. He glared at the ground.

"I have faith in you all. This mission will be good for you all to. . . develop better teamwork skills."

The words and get better acquainted were left unsaid, but they was heard all the same. Takara shifted uncomfortably, glancing uneasily at Rin.

With one last smile and a farewell, The Yellow Flash disappeared down the right path without a trace, leaving the three chuunin and Takara in silence.

"Let's go," Kakashi said after a few moments, wincing at the way his voice cut into the awkward quietness, and began to walk.

Obito grumbled irately and Rin smiled brightly and Takara stared impassively ahead as they followed their stoic captain.

It was blatantly obvious that this wasn't going to go well.

* * *

Six hours had passed by fairly quickly, and it was now well into the afternoon. The path had led then split into another two paths. To the right was the path that would take them around the forest, but would lead to the Hot Springs Village. The left path would take them directly through the forest and would get them to the village much faster.

However, this wasn't just any forest, Takara realized as she felt a prickle of unease shoot down her spine. The hair raised on the back of her neck as she stared at the tall, silent trees that marked the boundaries of the forest. Beyond the edges was the shady forest floor that seemed barren and distrustfully empty.

The Silent Forest, separating the boundaries of the Sound and Fire countries, was one of the most dangerous in the world. However, this wasn't because of the numerous deadly plants and predators the prowled within the shadows.

Its name was meant literally. The forest itself had plant-life with unusual natural chakra that absorbed vibrations like a pillow. The result was that sound simply didn't carry within the forest, creating the illusion that there was no sound at all. Such a place was extremely ideal ground for ambush and therefore valuable land.

However, most people avoided it because it worked both ways.

"We'll continue northwest through the Silent Forest until it gets dark. No breaks," Kakashi said swiftly, adjusting his pack on his shoulders.

Obito grumbled obstinately and was effectively ignored while Rin just smiled. Takara, however, blinked in surprise.

"Forgive my insubordination, but it is not safe to travel in this land at all, let alone when the sun begins the set. Camping in this forest is even more dangerous. It would be wiser to avoid this area completely."

Kakashi's grey eyes stared at her with blatant annoyance.

"This mission is time sensitive. Northwest is the quickest route. I'm sure we can handle it," he replied dryly, as if he barely acknowledged what Takara said.

The mahogany-haired girl bristled, her silver eyes snapping as she drew herself up to her full height so that she had to look down slightly in order to meet his eyes.

"You do not understand. This forest is—"

"Again, I believe we can handle it. At least, _Konoha_ chuunin can. Don't you underestimate us," Kakashi shot back, his steely grey eyes narrowing in response to her glare.

Takara flinched slightly, wincing at the slight pain in her chest. Konoha chuunin, he said. Us, he said. As if he didn't think she was one of them, like she didn't belong. Takara clenched her fists at her sides and gritted her teeth, but wiped her face clean of emotion with long-practiced skill. However, Obito caught her momentary unease, and frowned.

"Hey teme, that was uncalled for! Takara-chan is just as much a Leaf ninja as we are!" the Uchiha shouted, approaching Kakashi as if ready to attack.

Rin was frowning, obviously torn on which person she was supposed to defend.

"It is fine, Uchiha-san. Hatake-san obviously still does not trust me. I accept that," Takara said calmly, not removing her eyes from Kakashi's. "What I cannot accept, however, is that a team captain would jeopardize the mission due to his foolish arrogance."

At that, Kakashi stiffened and drew himself up taller.

"If anything, your insubordination is more of a threat to the mission than a forest."

Takara's eyes narrowed dangerously and her lanky frame trembled slightly with an anger that she couldn't quite explain.

Kakashi found that her eyes were boiling in their intensity and had to force himself to continue to meet them.

"If a captain is incapable of keeping their team safe while on a mission, insubordination is necessary and legal, according to shinobi rule. I would think that _you_ of all people would know that," Takara said in a low tone, something like a growl present in her voice.

Unconsciously, the two were slowly encroaching on one another, tension crackling in the air between them. Rin was growing increasingly nervous, certain that a vicious fight was about to begin; whereas Obito was grinning as if he were looking forward one.

"As captain,_ I_ am aware of all shinobi rules and regulations. However, I feel as if you've forgotten that such rules don't apply to outsiders," Kakashi replied tersely.

"_Outsider?_" Takara snarled, her shoulders beginning to hunch aggressively.

She was shocked by her own anger, but she simply couldn't find it within her to calm down. Why Kakashi's words stung her so didn't make any sense, but the thought of not being accepted into Team Minato was almost more than she could bear. . . He was hitting a soft spot that neither of them knew was there until now.

"Yes, an outsider. You are not from Konoha. You're only here to escape the war in your home country and are being paid to be a shinobi here. You are nothing but a mercenary, ranked lower on the leadership hierarchy than a genin."

Obito and Rin both gaped at Kakashi, surprised by the cruelty of his words.

Takara herself wasn't hurt by the rank comment. She cared little about rank, but to be described in such a negative way was unacceptable. Had she not already explained to the silver-haired chuunin that she would fight and die for Konoha? Why was he being like this?

"This is not about rank. This is about the safety of the team—" Takara began, but was brutally cut off by Kakashi.

"I am finished arguing about this. As team leader, I say that we are moving northwest. Those are my _orders._"

Takara bit her tongue so hard that it bled, but couldn't bring herself to go against a direct order. Old habits really did die hard.

For a long moment, Takara just stared at Kakashi, her silver eyes swirling with anger. She wanted to forcibly blur her vision so that she couldn't see his face, but knew that it would be a supremely stupid move in a forest this dangerous..

"As you wish, taichou," she said calmly, without a hint of sarcasm.

But Kakashi could see the scorn in her eyes, and felt his insides twist uneasily. Nonetheless, he kept his face impassive as he walked into the woods. His grey eyes surveyed the area carefully as his team followed him though the dense undergrowth. Huge trees stretched to the heavens, the canopy blocking out most of the sun, and yet the wildlife beneath continued to thrive, making for difficult travel. They would be better off in the trees.

With one, powerful flex of his legs, he was bounding up to a high tree branch. Immediately, Rin and Obito followed.

Takara however, stared up at her teammates coolly, her eyes carefully zooming in on every visible surface. Her head was starting to hurt from phasing in and out o focus, but it was necessary if she was going to be able to spot danger.

She wanted to warn them, to tell them of the things that she knew of this forest, but not only did her team captain completely disregard her place on the team, but revealing such information would be far too suspicious, classified information that no one from the Hot Springs Village would know.

It shouldn't have been a problem, because these forests were usually never travelled through due to the fact that they were so notorious for being disputed-over territory between Sound and Konoha. Battles used to break out between the two countries all the time. However, with the war going on, the Silent Forest was the last thing on anyone's mind, which was the reason that Kakashi thought it was safe enough to travel through.

But she had a feeling that that assumption was _very_ wrong.

"Are you coming?" Kakashi asked impatiently while Rin looked at her with concern.

"Come on Takara-chan!" Obito said with a grin, though he shot a dirty glare in Kakashi's direction, "If you stay far enough away from him, the teme's estrogen won't affect you too much!"

Rin looked surprised that Obito even knew what estrogen meant.

Takara blinked in slight confusion, the joke flying right over her head as she wondered how it was possible for Kakashi to produce estrogen. Choosing to ignore the comment, Takara gracefully leapt to the branch that Obito was standing on, landing lightly on her feet.

With one last look of warning, Kakashi took off.

That girl was s frustrating, always challenging him and getting under his skin the worst ways. He was stronger than her. He was senior to her. He was captain. It was ridiculous that a girl could bother him in such a way.

His decisions were wise, his instincts never wrong.

So then, why couldn't he quell the uneasiness in his gut?

* * *

"Yo, teme! It's going to get dark soon!" Obito said loudly, impatiently, as the rumbles of his stomach grew louder.

Takara could see the very slight clenching of his stomach as it churned and knew that he must have been considerably hungry. With a frown, she realized that she was hungry as well, despite the fact that she had been used to going long periods of time without food before she had come to Konoha. Living with Kushina, who stubbornly refused to allow anyone in her household to have fewer than three meals a day, had made her soft.

"We have a full hour of sunlight left," Kakashi admonished, "We can't waste time."

Takara had to concede to that fact, but as the light waned it became increasingly difficult to maintain clarity with her eyesight. Coupled with her loss of sleep and severe chakra depletion from the night before, forcing her eyes to readjust constantly was beginning to take its toll. There were instances where her vision would blur against her will, and she would viciously correct her vision, disgusted with the lack of discipline she's begun develop with her ability. She would make that a point in her training later.

But as the light decreased, it would make it more difficult for her spot danger.

"Obito has a point, taichou. In unfamiliar territory, it would be wise to search for a suitable campsite while it is still light out," Takara said, keeping the weariness out of her voice to the best of her ability.

"We will travel for another half an hour," was Kakashi's reply, though she could see the stubborn set of his jaw through his mask, "If we go longer, some of us should be able to navigate effectively, regardless of lack of light."

Rin and Obito shared confused glances, but Takara blinked, surprised that Kakashi had even bothered to remember her sensitive eyesight. At least that meant he didn't see her as completely incompetent.

Or, maybe he saw her as a useful tool.

Somehow, those words didn't hold the same satisfaction that she had once known.

The team of four pressed onward even as the sky began to turn a deeper shade of red, even as Takara could see he slight twinkle of the first evening star.

Her head was pounding wretchedly as her vision swam. It was getting harder to keep up with her team. Finally, she allowed her eyes to adjust to their natural setting, and the relief was immense. Closing her eyes, she released the breath that she was holding.

Later, she would reflect that it was that moment of weakness that had nearly cost them their lives.

Takara was only aware that things were amiss when Rin let out a screech of terror. The slight breeze of the evening had suddenly morphed into a roiling vortex of air. Being the lightest, Takara flew from her spot on the tree branch, sent into a nearby tree. She clung to it for dear life, opening her eyes to look around wildly for her team mates. Through the whirlwind of leaves, bark, dirt, and branches, she could make out human shapes. She opened her mouth to let out a desperate cry to them all, but her voice was completely drowned by the roaring of the wind. She could feel herself getting cut by the shattered splinters of wood, but the adrenaline coursing through her veins numbed the pain.

A heart-stopping crack reverberated in her chest as she lurched downwards, snapping her neck back in a whiplash. The tree she was hugging was creaking and groaning, bending to the force of the mighty wind. It jerked terribly from side to side, its roots being ripped from the rocky soil a hundred feet below. Suddenly, the soil was flying towards her. Takara realized with a sickening clarity that that the tree was falling, and that she would be crushed if she fell with it. Without any other option, she let go of the trunk and let the ferocious wind take her.

Takara felt the vortex carrying her skyward along with the forest it had ripped from the ground. Her mouth was open in a silent scream as her eyes remained closed, afraid to open them for fear being damaged by the flying debris that cut through her clothes and skin like a kunai. She couldn't seem to get in a decent breath of air due to the air pressure, her lungs burning with the need for oxygen. The roaring in her ears dulled considerably as her air-deprived brain began to shut down and her chest screamed.

Her hands groped the wind, hoping to be able to hold on to something, anything, if it would give her a better chance of survival. She felt cold and so horribly alone, lost in a torrent of wind and paralyzing fear and unable to summon the presence of mind to perform a jutsu.

Quickly, the faces of the people she had only just begun to hold dear blazed in her fuzzy brain—Minato, Kushina, Obito, Rin, hell, even Kakashi— and she found herself desperately wanting to stay alive, if it only meant that she would see them again.

She wanted to live, and right then that could have either be a very good or a very sad thing.

Her desperate hands suddenly connected with something. Something warm, fleshy, strong. She gripped it selfishly, brutishly, and it would have hurt anyone who had been a different situation. The other person's hand gripped hers just as viciously, refusing to let go. She imagined that it their nails were digging into her skin, but she was sure that she was returning the favor with interest. Suddenly, dying wasn't such a scary thought. At least she wasn't dying alone.

She was still in the vortex and she still couldn't breathe. Slowly, the fuzziness in her brain turned to pitch blackness, the roaring now nothing but a dull buzzing in her ears.

And then she was falling. She could feel the wind rushing past her body and the feeling of her gut lodging in her throat, but she was too far gone to really understand. She was looking up at the sky, reaching with one hand to grab at the single star twinkling happily in the sky even as it got farther away from her. It was a far prettier sight than the ground rushing up to meet her would have been.

Yes, she could definitely think of worse ways to die.

As Takara slipped into the blackness, she clung onto that hand as if it was the only thing keeping her alive_._

* * *

_"Remember, we all stumble, every one of us. _

_That's why it's a comfort to go hand-in-hand."_

_~Emily Kimbrough_

* * *

_**Author's Box**_

**Yeah, so I couldn't decide which quote to put. So I put both :D**

**It's****kind of cliffhanger**_****__. . ._** Not the best, but hey, even I don't know if she's dead yet**** O.o So STAY TUNED.**

**A shout out to all of my reviewers. . . I freakin' love you all! You make me a write-happy person!**

** I like this chapter at parts, and others I don't, but meh. . . I do, however, like the fact that Takara is getting a personality. One witha temper at that ;)l. Anyone find it intersting how afraid Takara is to hurt people? I wonder what that's all about. . . **

**AND MAN IS THIS CHAPTER LONG? 20 pages on word! One of the longest chapters I've every written *wipes sweat from brow* I hope that I'm not overwhelming you all.**

**And now it is about 2:00 AM. I'm going to bed.  
**

**Ja ne!  
**


	10. Silence

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Naruto. If I had, I would be fired because I woul obviously have a problem with deadlines. . .

* * *

**_Silence_**

_"Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence,  
and I learn, whatever state I may be in,  
therein to be content."_

_~Hellen Keller_

* * *

_It was sunny and warm, a perfect day by most anyone's standards. The world was laughing at him._

_A strong hand sat on his shoulder, but he couldn't feel it. He couldn't feel much of anything lately, because he was more concerned with making sure that he didn't feel at all. _

_That Man was gone._

_No, That Man was Dead, not gone. That Man was gone when on a mission, but that meant that He would come back._

_At the age of eight, he was chuunin, and he knew the difference between gone and Dead. He was, after all, a shinobi. A genius. Death wasn't hard to figure out._

_That Man wasn't gone. He was Dead, which was much more permanent. _

"_He's gone, Kakashi. He's gone."_

_And yet, people insist on using the word __**gone**__, as if he were too young to comprehend Death. But he was a shinobi. Death was what he lived, what he __breathed._

"Hatake-san."

_Sorry. _

_He hated that word._

_What were they all sorry for? They did nothing. It was That Man's fault anyway. They knew it too, and said so all the time._

_That Man broke the rules. Abandoned the mission. Hurt the village._

_That Man had told him, __**told him**__, that the village was everything. Never hurt the village._

_But He had broken the rules, so it was His fault._

"Hatake-san!"

_It was That Man's fault, so why did they look at him like that? Like it was __**his**__ fault?_

_He wouldn't have done that, not ever. He would have followed the rules, never broken them. He promised that when he became a ninja, so why did they stare at him like that?_

"_. . . son of trash. . ."_

"_. . .like father like son. . ."_

"_. . . bad blood. . ."_

"_**Hatake-san!**__"_

_It was so sunny and bright that day; as That Man was buried into the ground, the birds were chirping merrily and the cherry blossoms fluttered happily in the breeze. There were not many people there. There would have been though, if things had gone differently._

_That Man was Dead._

"_He's gone. I'm so sorry, Kakashi," His sensei's voice, but he ignored it. _

_Why was he sorry? Why were any of them sorry?_

_Because That Man was Dead? Because he was the one who found Him on the bloodied floor? Because of the names they called Him? Because of the names they called __**him**__? Because of the way they stare? Because of the whispers they speak when they think he can't hear? Because he can't look at himself in the mirror anymore without feeling the shame? Because he is alone and doesn't understand why? Because he is expected to be better even though it is never enough? Because all they ever see is Him and they won't stop staring at him – suffocating him – getting harder to breathe –he is going to die –please help – whywon'tsomeonehelphim—_

"_**HATAKE-SAN!**__"_

He gasped loudly as ice cold needles prickled his face and neck, shocking him back into the world. Gentle, but firm hands grabbed onto his wrists as he struggled to reach for his kunai pouch. Snapping his eyes open, he wildly looked around, but was only able to see white.

"Please calm down. This is Takara, member of Team Minato and also your team mate, assigned to retrieve a Konoha Ambassador from the Hot Spri—"

"Okay, I get it," Kakashi rasped irritably, pushing Takara away from him. He shook his cold, wet locks of silver hair from his face, fidgeting uncomfortably at the wetness of his clothing.

Takara frowned, but folded her hands on her lap as she sat beside her team captain while he came to. Maybe dumping cold water on his head wasn't the most gracious way of reviving her captain?

"You have received a minor concussion and a broken rib during the attack, as well as a laceration across your side," she informed him as he winced, "Other than that, I cannot tell other from minor cuts and bruises."

Kakashi sat up slowly, cringing from the pain in his head and side, and looked around. The sky was dark, million stars shining overhead. A small fire crackled beside them, illuminating their immediate area with an orange glow. About twenty feet to their left, he could just make out a small ravine behind a few trees. He could not, however, hear the stream, no matter how hard he strained his ears. It was extremely unsettling that their range of sound was limited to only a few foot radius by the forests's unique chakra. As his dark eyes fully adjusted to the dim light, he turned to look at his team mate.

She looked pretty banged up, a large purple bruise covering the entire left side of her face and neck shining in the reddish firelight. Her hair had come out of its ponytail, hanging messily to her collar bones, though pushed back away from her eyes. The parts of her legs that he could see were cut up and bruised.

"Your injuries?" he asked, looking her up and down carefully.

"Sprained wrist and fractured cheek bone," she replied stoically, though if she were in a lot of pain, she hid it well.

"Where are Obito and Rin?" he asked, stretching his stiff muscles.

A flash of uncertainty flickered across her silver gaze, and Kakashi froze, dread creeping into his chest.

"Where are they?"

"I. . .I had sent a few water clones to scout the immediate area, but they found nothing. I would have sent them out further, but my chakra stores are low. We can only hope that they have found each other already."

Kakashi grimaced at the thought of Obito stumbling blindly through the dark, soundless forest. Rin, at least, would be able to rationalize, and treat their injuries. On the other hand, the idea of Rin being left to fend for herself was also unappealing. She was more of a medic than she was a fighter.

"Any sign of the path?"

Takara scowled into the dim expanse of trees, her frustration bright in her eyes as she answered.

"No. I am extremely concerned about the distance we have been carried from the path. For all we know, we could be very close to Obito or Rin. But with the way this forest absorbs sound and chakra. . ."

Kakashi was very aware of how bad their situation was. They were both injured, tired, and missing half of their team. It was pitch black and eerily silent true to the forest's name, and the temperatures were plummeting. Not only that, but there was undoubtedly an enemy—the one who had unleashed the wind attack— lurking in the forest, both the sound of their movement and their chakra signature cloaked by the forest's strange energy. To top it all off, neither of them had a clue as to where they were or how far they were from any form of civilization.

"Our best bet will be to get to higher ground, if there is any nearby. We may be able to spot something that'll give away Rin's or Obito's positions, or maybe even the path," Kakashi reasoned to himself, mentally calculating their options.

"Or a clue as to the whereabouts of our enemy," Takara said quietly, her silver eyes glinting in the light like a cat's. Kakashi wished briefly that he could see as well as she could.

"How long were we both unconscious for?" he asked suddenly.

The brunette shifted slightly in her stiff kneeling position, and she once again went into a sort of debriefing mode.

"By the position of the sun, I assume that it was approximately 20:00 when we were attacked. It was around two and a half hours before I awoke, and another hour and a half before you did the same."

Four hours. It had to be around midnight, then.

So much could have happened in that time.

"Why didn't you try to wake me, especially since I had a concussion?" he asked, fighting the growing irritation and frustration that wanted to show in his voice.

Takara blatantly ignored his tone and shook her head.

"I had roused you to a conscious state twice to ensure your health. However, you had lost blood and therefore needed rest. I did not feel the need to keep you awake, seeing as we will not be moving this late at night," the girl reasoned carefully.

They both fell quiet, neither of them looking each other in the face. The silence was disconcerting.

"I'l l take watch."

"I will take watch."

The two young shinobi blinked at one another in surprise at their simultaneous decisions.

"Look, you should get some rest. I'll take watch from here," Kakashi finally murmured seriously, dark eyes narrowed in thought.

Takara stared at him for a long moment, her gaze suddenly far away. She was silent for so long that Kakashi almost became concerned that she had sustained more injury than she had let on. However, she suddenly snapped out of her daze, clenching her fists in her lap.

"Would my eyes not be better for keeping watch, though?" she questioned matter-of-factly, in that tone that contained only maturity and not a hint of rebelliousness. It was irritating.

Kakashi scowled at her, wondering why she was being difficult about this when she was obviously exhausted.

"For what I lack in sight, I make up for with my sense of smell."

Takara shifted uncomfortably, taking a deep breath as she felt the panic creeping into her chest. Sleeping was not something that she wanted to do, especially after the night before. Visions of black water and agonizing cold and tormented screams roared in her mind briefly, and she felt a chill seep into her bones.

Her silver eyes flashed with something strange, something that Kakashi couldn't quite place but could tell was very wrong.

"Sight would be better than smell, in this situation."

Kakashi's grey eyes narrowed.

"Don't underestimate my abilities."

Takara instinctively reacted to the hostility, her glowing silver eyes sharpening as she stared into Kakashi's

"I am not."

"Then, I say that I will take watch." Finally the frustration showed as Kakashi straightened, trying to prove dominance with his posture. "Don't argue with me."

Takara's eyes widened fractionally, before they narrowed into luminescent slits. Her tiredness was making her temper extremely short.

"I _will_ keep watch." She replied in a hard voice, and the silver-haired chuunin stiffened.

"And just _who_ is the captain of—"

"**Do not **_**dare**_** speak to me about rank at this moment, **_**Hatake-san**_," Takara's voice came, in such harshness that Kakashi's mouth snapped shut, "We are in this situation because of your _arrogance_. If you believe that you outrank me, then rise and _fight me_, rather than use my origin as an excuse to treat me as a gennin," she threatened in a low voice, a silent wind whipping her auburn mane against her pale face.

Kakashi was silent. His dark eyes flickered to the ground, burning with both anger and acknowledgement.

She was right. If he had listened to her earlier, then this wouldn't have happened. The first mission that Minato-sensei had entrusted to him, and he'd blown it. He'd failed.

Takara watched him carefully, coldly, for several seconds. She expected anger from the silver-haired chuunin, prepared herself for an angry strike, but nothing came. She studied him harder, before realizing with a jolt just how malevolent her words had been.

She had blamed him for something that probably would have happened regardless of whether or not they had strayed from the path, and had greatly overstepped her boundaries. And she was the last person who should be allowed to make judgments. Reluctantly, Takara lowered her aggressive posture.

"I apologize. That was out of parameter," she said quietly, nearly lost in the sound-sucking forest.

Kakashi didn't answer, nor did he look at her. Respecting his wish to be left alone, Takara stood fluidly and leapt up into a high tree branch, where she would have a good field of vision. She glanced at the still form, bathed in both moonlight and firelight, and wondered whether or not they'd live through this, wondered if she'd ever gain his trust.

"Rest well."

He might have heard her. Or her voice might have been lost to the thick silence of the forest.

Neither slept.

* * *

Every muscle in Takara's boy ached the next morning. She forced herself to move, wincing in pain as her battered muscles stretched, but she knew that she had to loosen them in order for them to not be a hindrance to her.

Close behind her, Kakashi was washing his face in the river, with his mask on, because he was still paranoid that she would see his face even out of her peripheral with her superb eyesight. She rolled her silver eyes at his suspicion, but kept quiet.

Takara could see the bird across the creek, singing its heart out no doubt, but not a single tone hit her ears. Her skin prickled once again with unease. They needed to get out of this forest, and soon.

They had no bags. Both of their packs had been lost in the whirlwind, and Takara no longer had her weapon's pouch, so they had nothing to pack and nothing to slow them down.

"Are you ready, Hatake-san?" She yelled in Kakashi's direction, for she knew that Kakashi would not hear her otherwise.

The silver haired teenager straightened himself, and turned to her with an incredulous expression.

"Are we not eating?" he called back, though his voice was muted from that distance, and she had to rely on the movement of his lips.

Takara frowned, realizing that they indeed had not eaten. She did not feel hungry, even though she had been constantly ravenous as of late. She could only guess that it was the result of ingrained survival instincts that she had acquired during her time in Sound. She rarely ever ate while on a mission, only when she remembered to.

But Kakashi was right. They needed sustenance. Once they strayed from the river , they may not find much to eat.

Kakashi moved so that they were only a few feet apart.

"Oh. . . yes," she replied, her silver eyes looking into the forest thoughtfully, "It would be nice to catch a deer so that we could use the bladder as a canteen, but it would be unwise to attract unwanted attention."

Kakashi blinked at her.

"The bladder. . ."

Takara stared at him with utmost seriousness.

"Of course."

"With nothing to clean it with?"

"The consumption of urine is an age-old practice, with little health risk if drunk in moderation."

Kakashi decided to just not answer or mention his concern of parasites. After all, there was no way that he would be more squeamish than a girl, no matter how strange she was.

"As things are, we're going to have to have available water. I could carry it with a jutsu, but—"

"No," Kakashi interjected, "That'll waste your chakra."

Takara felt her eye twitch in annoyance, which was something that didn't happen often, but she had the feeling that it was going to happen more frequently the longer she and Kakashi were stuck together.

"As I am aware. Thank you for the observation," she said dryly, earning a blank look.

"I think we should stay near the river, traveling upstream. The rivers here lead to waterfalls and higher ground," Kakashi continued, ignoring Takara's jibe.

He was right, but Takara wasn't going to give him the pleasure of approval. Ignoring the fact that her thoughts were incredibly childish, she stood, and began to remove her kimono.

Kakashi blinked in dismay.

"What are you doing?"

Her silver eyes looked at him blankly.

"I am removing my clothing," she stated.

"Yes, I see. But _why_?"

Takara frowned, confused by the incredulous way that he was looking at her. Slipping her short kimono off of her pale, scarred shoulders, she was left in a black jumper. The spandex material was high-necked, cut off at the shoulders, and ended at mid-thigh .

Kakashi looked away pointedly.

"I am fishing," she stated, folding the clothing gently and setting it on the ground before getting to work on unzipping her boots, "If we are walking against the river, it will take us to higher elevation and cooler temperatures. I do not want to be wet," stepping out of her boots, her lanky form turned towards him questioningly, "You want to eat, yes?"

The silver haired chuunin crossed his arms indignantly, stormy grey eyes refusing to look at her.

"Then please allow me to finish my task."

Kakashi kept his mouth shut, and moodily sat down. Takara rolled her eyes— a new habit, she realized—at the way he pretended not to be watching her out of the very edge of his peripheral. Slowly, she stepped into the icy river, goose bumps rising on her skin. She looked down into the slightly murky stream, her silver irises beginning to stretch and spin.

Every particle, visible to her. No bubble unnoticed. The tiny flecks of Micah in the stones at the bottom, winking at her from the river bed. The feeler of an aquatic bug wriggling from underneath a rock. And then—

It almost startled even Kakashi, the speed she showed as one of her long-fingered hands flashed out. The next instant, the girl was holding two wriggling fish over her head, their silver bellies flashing.

"This should suffice," she said, "We must not take too much time to eat," she continued as she laid the fish on a rock and promptly began to de-scale them with the expertise of a fisherman from Wave country.

Kakashi felt slightly emasculated.

* * *

"Are you ready?"

The two young shinobi stood side by side at the edge of the eerily silent forest, staring into its menacing depths.

"As I will ever be," the brunette replied seriously, her shoulders squared and looking for the entire world like a soldier ready to march into battle.

The two shared a brief thought—how much they wished they still had their weapon pouch.

They stepped forward.

* * *

It was really unnerving for the only sound that reached your eardrums to be the pounding of your heart and the crunch of foliage beneath your feet. Engulfed in a soundless void, Takara's eyes flitted in every direction with paranoia.

In front of her, Kakashi was rigid as he walked. Equipped with nothing but his eyes and strong sense of smell, he felt his skin crawl as if millions of invisible eyes stared at him. It was strange for the both of them, to be so uneasy when they were usually so confident in their shinobi skills.

Neither tried to speak to the other. They strained for even a little hint of sound in the distance, looking for signs of Obito, Rin, or their attacker.

Takara found herself wondering about the silver-haired boy as she stared at his back. In her life, she'd met many chilling people; those without positive emotions and who wished to remain solitary at all times if they could help it. Their cores—their souls—Takara could only describe them as being dull, icy, and sharp as knives. You didn't get too close, if you valued your life.

But Kakashi wasn't like that. He was cold, yes, but it wasn't the type of cold that resonated from deep within. It was cold only felt on the surface, radiating from the skin. It wasn't the type of chill that could freeze over the entire room, but one that could be heated and cooled in an instant—strictly artificial. However, this cold front was as indestructible as diamonds. Takara could sense that there was far more to the Hatake than what met the eye, but had no idea what to do so that she may be able to look beyond it. Perhaps she never would; he may never trust her. Though, it was obvious that trust was a serious issue for the silver-haired chuunin, not that Takara had any room to speak about trust.

She knew that she was getting too lost in her thoughts, but sleep deprivation was making her mind lose its sharpness, and she noticed the glint of light whizzing through the trees just a moment too late.

"Hatake-san!" Takara called, but she realized fearfully that he wouldn't be able to hear her. They were no longer in a clearing void of vegetation; they were right in the middle of the sound-sucking foliage. She was several feet away and she was not a particularly loud person to begin with, so her voice would never be able to carry far enough.

She leapt.

Kakashi felt the wind knocked out of him just a fraction of a second after he sensed an ominous presence to his left. Alarm shot through his system as he began sprawling towards the ground. Tucking and rolling, he landed with some grace in a crouch, hand searching for a kunai that wasn't there. He was met with the startling silver eyes of Takara, whom he realized had pushed him out of the way of an attack. The two shinobi leapt to their feet, immediately shifting into the standard back to back position, poised for battle.

"Takara," he said loudly, testing to see if she could hear him at that proximity even if they faced opposite directions.

"Yes," came her voice, almost sounding as if she were saying it softly, though he could tell by the strong vibrations against his back that she was near-yelling. At least they could hear each other, though.

"Do you see anything?"

"No."

Kakashi cursed.

"I can't sense or smell anything. This guy's screwing with us."

Takara tilted her head, not understanding the expression.

"Screwing?"

". . . Nevermind," Kakashi muttered quietly, knowing that she couldn't hear him.

Silence. Stillness. The tension was apparent in the harsh lines of their taught muscles and drawn lips. Takara's head throbbed as she strained her eyes for anything, but there was nothing to be found.

"I do not see anything."

"And I don't smell anything."

But the goose bumps on Takara's arms refused to disappear; there was something wrong.

Eyes narrowed, Kakashi carefully felt around him for anything out of place, his gut screaming in warning. He closed his eyes, feeling the thrum of energy around him. Above him. Beneath. . .

Kakashi's yes snapped open in realization, just as two kunai came hurling through the trees, heading straight for both shinobi's chests.

"Takara, don't—"

Takara acted on reflex, hooking her arm around Kakashi's neck and forcing him to duck with her.

And triggered the trap that they were standing upon.

The sound of their shouts was lost in the thunderous roar, which in turn was devoured by the forest, as the ground gave way beneath them into the deep cavern below.

The two shinobi desperately tried to grab to the sides of the trap, only to have the earth crumble between their fingers. Not even chakra would allow them to grip to the side booby-trap.

So, they settled for grasping each other. Their only life-line, their only support, as they plummeted into the damp, dark earth.

* * *

It was hard to tell who woke first. Takara was sure that she'd been conscious longer, but Kakashi had actually been able to get up first.

He unburied his team-mate from beneath piles of rock and dirt, allowing her to finally breathe again. Or, rather, better than before. She'd broken a rib, and it'd punctured her left lung, leaving her with an awful wheeze. Blood trickled in her eyes from a head wound, though the concussion was the real hindrance to her sight. She allowed her eyes to unfocus, knowing that they would do her little good at that point.

Kakashi was certain that he had a broken elbow and foot, but he knew that he was better off than his team mate, no matter how valiantly she tried to hide that fact. She insisted on sitting up and even standing, investigating their pitch-black surroundings as best she could with her lack of sight.

Above them, the cavern was completely sealed shut by both rock and a chakra seal. Injured, low on chakra, and with little affinity for earth jutsu, they were stuck. Whatever enemy had been out there, watching them, they had succeeded in the capture of the two Konoha shinobi.

They could do little else, but wait.

With nothing else to do, and even less to say, Kakashi and Takara settled themselves against the cold, clean-cut sides of the trap, sinking into thought.

Kakashi could hear Takara's whistling breath across from him, and it occurred to him in an off-handed way that they could hear sound again. It did little to brighten his mood.

Perhaps this was it. Perhaps this was as far into war as Kakashi would see. Born into it, and dying in it before he'd reached jounin.

War is all he's known since he was small. It was the talk that the adults created small-talk with at the barber shop and the grocery store—the most recent victory, the number of casualties, the possibility of peace. The adults spoke of it wistfully, with the memory of a time of smiles, a time without rationing, a time of peace. To Kakashi, it was reality. He'd been breathing the stifling fear of attack since he'd entered the academy. He's been exposed to death, and what that meant before he'd reach the academy. He'd been taught it was entirely possible for him to see the front lines of battle and die before he'd even reached chuunin.

It was morbidly fascinating, wondering whether or not he'd been lucky or unlucky for not having known peace before he died. After all, you can't feel regret nor contentment from something you haven't experienced.

Peace. Love. Happiness.

Takara wasn't sure which of those things she'd experienced before, but she's certain that she'd felt them at some point over the past month of being in Konoha.

Was she lucky?

There were plenty of people who'd died that day, never knowing. Never knowing the warmth in the chest at receiving a smile devoid of madness or malice. Never having the security of knowing where their next meal was coming from. Never knowing what a shower was, or what ramen smelled like, or even the taste of clean water.

She'd left Sound, ignorant to concepts like humanity or emotion. Left the others in cells, certain that their fate was better than whatever awaited them in the light. Left, certain that she was going to die. Death had been ideal. Death had been safe. Death had been comfort.

She would have never known.

Takara's chest tightened, making it even harder to draw breath. Her breath shook with the realization that it wasn't enough. She wanted to know _more_.

_She didn't want to die. _

But, she shouldn't complain. She should be grateful. She _was_ grateful.

Swallowing, she tilted her head back against the rock, reveling in the pain exploding through her skull at the gentle contact. She wasn't dead yet.

Across from her, she heard Kakashi draw a long breath. She closed her eyes.

She was used to the dark. She was used to sitting without company for hours on end—or, rather, without the company of the _living_. It wouldn't have bothered her too much had she been left alone to die. She's never expected anything else.

But, the sound of his breath was comforting. His breathing assured her that she wasn't alone.

In the past, another person meant pain. It meant competition for survival. It meant less food. Less water. Less air. Less space. It meant battle. War. Paranoia. Nothing.

She hadn't known it. Another person could also mean. . . Peace.

That's what this was. Peace.

". . . Hatake-san?"

She sensed that he'd frozen. It meant that he'd heard her.

"Can I call you. . . May I call you Kakashi-san?"

The silver -haired chuunin was quiet for several seconds, his body eerily still, his breathing gone. Takara stared calmly at him, the numbness of impending death removing any nervousness or apprehension to her question.

The threat of the end causes strange things to happen to a person. It peels back the layers of façade, leaving the soul out in the open. At its strongest, and at its most vulnerable.

Kakashi figured he ha nothing left to lose but his pride. Not that there was much of that left in the eyes of Takara.

". . . As long as you don't call me _–kun_."

The silence was shattered, and, suddenly, Takara could breathe again. She felt a small tug on the corner of her lips, and she fought a strange, new urge coiling in her chest.

"And may I continue to do so if we live through this?"

A sigh of irritation.

"If you must," he mumbled, "But no_ -kun_ ."

"Why does such an honorific bother you? Is it not a term of affection?" Takara asked, finding his ardent dislike of the honorific entertaining.

"I don't look like a child," he huffed.

Takara stared blankly in the direction of Kakashi's for several seconds. Slowly, as the words processed in her brain, her silver eyes began to widen, blinking owlishly in the dark in sudden epiphany.

"You. . . You dislike that honorific because. . . you are self conscious of your _height_!"

Takara didn't need to see Kakashi to know that he looked absolutely horrified, the air shifting as he sprang from his lounging position.

"I- I am _not_!"

It was all the confirmation she needed.

"You are the shortest of the team. Your hair only gives the illusion of height."

"_It does not!"_

The pressure in her chest was building.

"You cannot fool my eyes, Hata. . . Ka. . .Kakashi-_kun_!"

"_**OI!**_"

And then she burst.

It hurt her ears, the shrill sound tearing from her vocals chords and ricocheting off of the stone walls. Tears began trickling down her face, the pain in her lungs was so intense, but the feeling of laughter was too strange to stop. Strange, wonderful, and addictive. She didn't want it to end.

Unfortunately, her lungs disagreed, and her abrupt and fierce laughter ended with a wet cough and a mouthful of blood, which she graciously spat to the side. Her shoulders still shook, and her diaphragm spasmed with aftershocks, unused to being used in such a way. The last of her laughter died, decreasing in intensity until the pair was once again encased in silence.

Kakashi opened his mouth, and said the very first thing that came to mind.

"You have the most obnoxious laugh I've ever heard."

Takara ignored him.

It was funny. Her lungs screamed in agony. Her head wailed at being jostled. Her fractured cheek bone throbbed with the use of her facial muscles. But, Takara was certain that she'd never felt anything so wonderful in her entire life.

She would never have known.

* * *

How long they had been in there, they had little idea. The very slight changes in temperature were the only thing that indicated time.

The best they could tell, it'd been a full thirty-six hours since their capture. They wondered what was taking the enemy so long.

They went through several theories. The enemy had gone for reinforcements. The enemy was letting them suffer.

What they really feared, was that the enemy was going to leave them there indefinitely.

"What do you feel. . . is worse, Kakashi-san?" Takara asked idly, when the silence became too much to bear, "Dehydration. . . or execution?"

Kakashi didn't answer for a second, paying attention to the way her breathing came in rasps now, and wondering how much time she'd have left before the internal bleeding took her. He tried to not allow those thoughts to consume him, and he humored her only half-sensible question.

"Dehydration would be slower. . . But there isn't a guarantee that the enemy would kill us quickly."

"We would not have any useful information to offer. It would be quick."

"Perhaps. . . Unless they use us for ransom."

Takara scoffed weakly.

"We have no value."

Kakashi shook his head wearily, completely agreeing with her. But, he knew his sensei.

"Minato-sensei would come for us."

Takara paused, trying to catch her breath before she muttered.

"That does not sound. . . like a compliment."

"Minato-sensei is an elite shinobi—one of the most powerful that our village has to offer," Kakashi said, through a dry throat. He didn't usually speak this much at once, especially in praise. The dehydration was probably getting to him.

"But, Minato-sensei has one major flaw. He puts the lives of his team mates above the objective. Above the mission. . ." The silver-haired chuunin struggled to continue speaking, his voice coming out ragged and croaking from lack of water, "That's a mistake. An individual is not above the village."

For a long time, Takara didn't answer. Kakashi wondered, in an off-handed way, if she'd finally passed out. If her injuries had finally become too much, and she was finally slipping away. . .

His heart lurched in his chest.

"Takara?"

The sound of a slow, painful movement reached his ears. Kakashi felt his heart stutter back to its slow pace. He let out a slow breath.

". . . It is a mistake. . . to jeopardize the mission. . . We are. . . Shinobi. . . Expendable," came Takara's slow response, so quiet that Kakashi had to strain in order to hear her. A weak cough bounced off of the cave's walls.

"But, Kakashi-san. . . . You do not fight. . . for the village," Takara wheezed, "You fight. . . for those you. . . know. . . You fight for. . . individuals."

There was a long series of weak coughs, wet not with the sound of water, but with the gurgle of rising blood. Kakashi waited with uncharacteristic patience. He had plenty of time. Finally, Takara regained control of her breathing enough to croak out a few more words.

"Is a village. . . not composed of. . . individuals?"

Kakashi did not have a chance to respond, even if he'd had the words. The final sounds that cut through his state of stunned silence was the sound of a body, falling to the side with a dull thud.

Words bounced in his head.

_Protect the village. Always the village. Fight for individuals? Never abandon the mission. But then, what do you fight for? The village? The village was everything. Never hurt the village._

_Why do you fight?_

_Do you even know?_

The words rushed through his mind rapidly, sickeningly, feverishly, until they no longer made sense. He didn't try to listen. They didn't matter anymore.

Without really realizing what he was doing, Kakashi crawled over to the other side of the cavern—He hadn't moved in hours upon hours. It hurt to move. He couldn't feel his foot, so he dragged it.

Finally, he reached the body, still softly breathing, even if was only a wheeze. Cold, unmoving, but still alive.

And as he moved, blindly, to straighten her body so that her head lolled on his shoulder, the only thing that occurred to him is that he wasn't alone as long as she was still breathing.

He didn't want to be alone.

The voices faded, and blessed silence began to consume him.

* * *

He'd thought that he was dead. There was a light.

But the light wasn't pleasant; it pierced through his mind, made his head throb. This couldn't be death. It hurt too badly. . .

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!"

Kakashi's eyes flew open in alarm, and he instinctively flung himself over his still-unconcious team-mate as the world shook. An explosion loud enough to rip his brain from his ear canals rattled him to the bone, and shards of rock fell around them. Somehow, they missed.

"_Are_ _you __**trying**__ to blow them to bits?!_" a feminine voice screeched.

"How else were we supposed to get in?"

"I'm sure I could have thought of a few ways. . ." came a weary, exasperated voice.

Kakashi could hardly believe it.

"OI! YOU ALIVE DOWN THERE?!"

Kakashi was certain that he'd never be more relieved to hear that voice than he was right then.

Not that he'd ever, ever admit that.

"Obito. . . . You're late."

* * *

Okay, he'd be honest. That hadn't gone according to plan.

The objective? To get his team to cooperate better and for certain individuals to grow in the weakest parts of their personalities.

So, things hadn't turned out all that badly, all things considered. It could have been worse, anyway. . .

Takara was in stable condition, with her injuries treated, thanks to Rin. She was still unconscious, her light body resting on Obito's back, but she was no longer in danger of dying.

Kakashi, once his foot was healed and he'd consumed a soldier pill, insisted upon traveling with the rest of the group. If he noticed the slightly slower pace that the group had settled on for his sake, he didn't comment on it, nor did he fight it.

Ironically, the pair that had the least skill, had completed the mission first.

By some miracle, Obito had used his brain for something other than ogling his brunette teammate, and Rin had actually been able to show leadership capabilities without a head of bright silver hair to capture her attention.

Amazing, the things that could be accomplished when hormones were ignored.

Obito and Rin had assumed after the initial attack that Takara and Kakashi had continued on to Hot Spring country as if nothing had happened, completely unscathed, like the presumed geniuses they were. Consequentially, because everyone knows what they say about assuming things, the pair had been shocked to find, once they'd found their way to the village, that the other half of their team had not arrived, and no one had seen them.

That was when they began to panic.

Minato had arrived the next morning, expecting to see four re-unified chuunin, much more appreciative of each other's company (and voices) after their separation in the Silent Forest. He'd been fully prepared to congratulate them on a job well-done after revealing that there was no ambassador for them to escort back to Konoha, and that it had all been a team-work exercise organized by him, including the sudden wind storm in the woods. He'd wanted to see how Obito and Rin would handle things without a leader, and if Kakashi and Takara could somehow remain in the same vicinity without killing each other. They'd have a good laugh about it, after, as per usual, his team tried to kill him or have his rank stripped for cruel and unusual training methods.

It kind of killed his plan, to say the least, that both Takara and Kakashi hadn't made it to Hot Springs.

But, what's past is past. What's done is done. All's well that ends well, and all of that. Kakashi and Takara were both safe, and perhaps maybe this all hadn't been a complete disaster.

Minato watched as Kakashi hovered unusually close to Obito, steely eyes glancing at Takara's limp form as if he was concerned that Obito's erratic tree hopping would disturb her, or that maybe he'd drop her.

It wouldn't be the first time Obito's dropped an injured charge.

Meanwhile, Obito and Rin were able to have pleasant, less awkward conversations, Rin more willing to listen to the things Obito was saying—Which, to her pleasant surprise, wasn't all nonsense.

Minato tried to hide the knowing smile that was steadily growing on his face. But, the smile quickly vanished as another, more pressing thought consumed him.

"But wait, if the wind jutsu was Minato-sensei's fault. . . Then what's with the trap in the forest?" Obito suddenly voiced, eyeing his sensei a little accusingly.

"It was probably an old trap for Konoha shinobi," Rin said logically, "After all, there used to be a lot of fighting there. . ."

Minato was silent, an unpleasant feeling coiling within his stomach as his mind immediately banished Rin's theory.

The trap was new. Fresh, even, as far as Minato could tell as he'd examined the chakra seals around the area that Kakashi and Takara had fallen. The problem was that there were no indications of human chakra nearby. Not a single presence. Not even a scent. If there'd been a human being in that area within the past forty-eight hours, Minato would have sensed it.

That being as it was, there hadn't been any indication of human activity other than his students' anywhere in the region.

Whatever had been out there to capture his students had been deliberate, and selective. Takara and Kakashi had been meant to be caught.

Minato's blue eyes narrowed like razors.

_Or, rather, Takara had been meant to be caught._

* * *

Forty-eight hours ago, coiled up in the shadows of a bush, a small grass snake had sat, its lense-like eyes watching in earnest as two shinobi walked past its look-out spot. Its black tongue had flicked, tasting the air that carried the scent of the two intruders.

Its slitted eyes had dilated as a pungent smell filled its glands. A scent that had made its head bob side to side in recognition.

With a soft hiss, the serpent released the trap seal laced between its scales.

* * *

_"Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself, and know that everything in life has purpose. . ."_

_~ Elisabeth Kubler-Ross  
_

* * *

_**A/N: I AM SO SORRY  
**  
**I mean, I won't apologize for having a complicated, busy life. . . . But I truly, truly apologize for not answering all of your messages. I just want to thank all of you so much if you've stuck with me all of this time, and just know that, if you sent me a message, I received it, and every time I did, I vowed to work on this even if I just had a little time . . . Just. . . Thanks so much.**_

On another note. . . part of the reason this chapter took so long is because I. . . hated it. I felt like it was so dull and boring and! Just let me know where I can improve on in this! Or if I bored you to tears! Don't hold back! I can take it!

**This fic won't be updated often, I don't think . . .**  
**But it's not over, believe me. Hopefully this update proves that to you!**

**Er, there was one person. . . I'm so sorry I don't know who you are! I cleared my inbox! Who sent me a private message wondering if they could use this fic as art inspiration? Yes, of course you can! I don't mind at all, so long as I get to see it :D**

**And I've actually had two questions about if Takara's eyes were going to be like some Super-Sharingan or something. . . .**  
**The answer is no, haha XD That's all I'm telling you, but GOD if I haven't read enough 'girl with eyes that could beat Itachi's' fics to strangle myself with. **

**Anyway, with the school year about to start up again. . . I'll actually be checking my email, haha. . . so messages will be received this time! So feel free to do so!**

**Again, I just want to HUG YOU TO DEATH if you're still here!**

**Ja ne!**


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